About 70 doctors and nurses were last night reunited with their families after three months in Afghanistan.

There were joyous scenes as medics from 204 Field Hospital (Volunteer) arrived back into Belfast by ferry from Birkenhead and were transported to a Territorial Army base in Co Down for their welcome.

For the past three months they have been responsible for the biggest Army hospital in the war zone.

They dealt with more than 50 deaths and treated hundreds of serious and life threatening injuries and were the busiest squadron to man the state-of-the-art desert hospital to date.

More than half of 204 Field Hospital is made up of staff from the five health trusts across Northern Ireland. A total of 38 medical professionals, including consultants, surgeons, doctors, anaesthetists, nurses, ambulance drivers, pharmacists and dentists have teamed up with 21 reservists from non-healthcare organisations and three regular soldiers at Camp Bastion.

Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Iain Moles said the volunteer soldiers had been tested to their limits.

“We dealth with over 400 operations, 1000 emergency department attendances, 246 patients in intensive care unit/ high dependency unit, 500 patients were admitted to wards and sadly over 55 deaths, some quite grisly. Still, going home to the NHS will be different, it will lack the cohesion, speed and focus of care here, we will be back to waiting lists and trolley waits, targets and deadlines. The 'wokka wokka' of an approaching Chinook helicopter will no longer be the herald of business.

“We have much to be proud of, from the early frantic learning days just three months ago, to the calm, focused, almost nonchalant but highly effective manner the unit now have as yet another trauma case is brought in. Our paramedics have learned and practiced their skills in an intense and busy hospital, all have excelled all have grown in stature. There is an overwhelming feeling of having done well.”