81st MDG observes BSC Week Published March 13, 2013 By Steve Pivnick 81st Medical Group Public Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- The 81st Medical Group's Biomedical Service Corps members have been observing their first "Air Force BSC Week" Monday to Friday. The corps marks its 48th anniversary Friday. Spearheading the event is Col. Thomas Bacon, 81st Diagnostics and Therapeutics Squadron commander and senior BSC advisor for the medical group. The corps started with 809 officers in 14 career fields. There currently are 2,300 BSCs serving in 18 career fields. Keesler has 14 of the 18 BSC career fields -- audiologist, speech language pathology, bioenvironmental engineer, biomedical laboratory officer, clinical psychology, clinical social worker, dietician, medical health physicist, occupational therapy, optometrist, pharmacist, physical therapist, physician assistant and public health officers. Addressing the BSCs and their medical technicians, Bacon commented, "BSCs and their techs are like the I-beams that hold up the medical group. You don't always see them but they are doing a lot of the heavy lifting. This BSC week will be a great opportunity for us to educate our patients and hospital staff on all the great things you bring to the mission." The week-long observance began with a breakfast and a teleconference with Brig. Gen. James Carroll, commander of the Air Force Medical Support Agency, Arlington, Va., and chief of the Biomedical Sciences Corps. While the Air Force plans a special ceremony Friday at the Women's Memorial in Arlington, Va., the Keesler BSCs will hold the first "Ides of March BSC Golf Tournament" at Biloxi's Sunkist Country Club.