An Army medic preparing to face the horrors of war in Afghanistan says he cannot wait to get out there.

Territorial Army (TA) member, Kevin Cairney, knows he can expect heavy casualties during his four-month tour at Camp Bastion, the British Army base in Helmand Province.

But he says all he can think about is flying out there to put his skills to good use and save lives.

The 28-year-old corporal, from Swanley, is one of 90 reservists from 256 (City of London) Field Hospital (Volunteers) who will be deployed to the war zone in September to provide clinical expertise for the Military Field Hospital.

The resuscitation and trauma nurse at Queen Mary’s Hospital, in Sidcup, endured 14-hour days carrying 22kg of equipment during an intensive four-week training period.

But he says his biggest challenge was a hospital exercise at the Royal Army Medical Corps’ training facility in Strensall, North Yorkshire, where he faced a simulation of conditions in Afghanistan, including real army amputees, special effects and make-up.

Speaking of the veterans, Mr Cairney, who has been preparing for his tour for more than a year, said: "These guys have been through it all before and they act it out, which is really quite frightening.

"The training is very much focused on trauma. We know the injury patterns are going to be severe, and we’ll have guys coming in requiring the best treatment in the world."

He added: "It’s not so much the number of people, it’s the type of injuries they are going to have. In A&E you might get one limb trauma or a stabbing, but these guys could have been ripped apart."

The father-of-one will leave behind wife Natalie, 34, and son Finley, aged two.