#Airmen Deploy to Deliver #Ebola Treatment Facility

By Air Force Senior Airman Kayla Newman
633rd Air Base Wing

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va., Sept. 29, 2014 - Airmen from the 633rd Medical Group here partnered with representatives from the U.S. Public Health Service on Sept. 26 to deliver a modular medical treatment center as part of the U.S. whole-of-government effort to support humanitarian relief operations in Ebola-stricken African nations.

Airmen assigned to the 633rd Medical Group board a C-17 Globemaster at Langley Air Force Base, Va., Sept. 26, 2014. The 633rd Medical Group packaged and delivered a modular medical treatment center, as part of a governmentwide effort to support humanitarian relief operations in Ebola-stricken African nations. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kayla Newman  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.

Airmen from the 633rd Medical Group accompanied the Expeditionary Medical Support System, or EMEDS, to Africa. And while they will not be involved in treatment of patients exposed to the virus, they will be supporting the overall effort by setting up the facility and training international health care workers officials said.

Fulfilling a State Department request

In early September, Defense Department officials approved the State Department's request for a 25-bed deployable hospital facility and the equipment and personnel required to set it up. The Air Force's Expeditionary Medical Support System fulfilled that request, meaning Operation United Assistance -- the designation for Ebola relief missions -- receives the largest version of the EMEDS facility. The facility can treat a population at risk of up to 6,500.

"Over the past week or so, 633rd MDG airmen have worked in tandem with representatives from the U.S. Public Health Service as part of a multiagency effort," said Air Force Lt. Col. Christopher Dun, chief of the expeditionary medical operations division in the office of the Air Combat Command surgeon. "From the scale of response, this is a national effort. Experts from across the country are working together to bring meaningful relief to those stricken by this terrible disease."

Setting up facility, training health professionals

As part of the joint effort from multiple government agencies, airmen will set the stage for further mission success by standing up the EMEDS and training public health professionals on the proper use of the extensive tools available to them.

"The most important thing is the airmen setting up and training the [international health workers] on the equipment and how it works," said Air Force Brig. Gen. (Dr.) Sean L. Murphy, ACC's command surgeon. He noted that while the airmen will not be doing patient care, they will use force health protection measures as a precaution and will play an important role in the humanitarian mission.

"We are potentially setting a precedent, because the EMEDS unit is typically set up for things like trauma care," said Public Health Service Rear Adm. Scott Giberson, acting deputy surgeon general. "[Instead], we will be using it for an infectious pathogen and treatment of international health care workers."

The Air Force's EMEDS is one of the greatest assets to have in this situation, Giberson said, noting that the Defense Department, U.S. Army Africa and U.S. Africa Command are supporting the effort with logistics and other contributions. "But the Air Force has the piece of delivering the facility for us and [providing] the expertise of setting up the facility and training us on the facility," he added. "We need that piece of the puzzle to complete the successful mission."