By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas, Oct. 27, 2014 - Military health professionals training to be part of the medical support team that may be called upon to respond to new cases of Ebola in the U.S. can take pride that the nation turned to military medicine when faced with a potentially devastating virus, the Army's top doctor said.
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The Army surgeon general met with the Defense Department's 30-member team here last week to express her appreciation for their willingness to be part of the response to Ebola virus concerns.
Army Lt. Gen. Patricia D. Horoho visited the San Antonio Military Medical Center, where the team is receiving specific and deliberate training, on Oct. 24, 2014. She took questions and lauded the group for their participation in DoD's unprecedented mission.
"I just wanted to be able to come by, to be perfectly honest, to look everyone in the eye and say 'thank you,'" she said. "Thank you very much for your agreement to do this...'"
Greatly Appreciative
Horoho said she, and fellow service surgeons general, Navy Vice Adm. Matthew L. Nathan and Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas W. Travis, were "greatly appreciative" of their efforts.
"We are very, very proud of those who are serving in military medicine," Horoho said, "and I think you should be proud that the nation, when it was most concerned, turned to military medicine."
"I think that speaks volumes," she said. "I think it really shows not only do you have the reputation on the battlefield ... you have the reputation in the United States to be able to deliver the highest quality of care."
That is done, Horoho said, "by what you do each and every day so I really just wanted to come by and say thank you very much."
The general encouraged the team, as it continues to train to proficiency, to "really focus on the team steps and communication."
Get used to communicating the nuances, Horoho said, and learning each other's strengths and weaknesses, and really keep an eye on each other.
"[That's] how you're going to be successful, and how you're going to come back healthy," she said. "So thank you very much and Godspeed to you."
Leader Commitment
Following the day's training, two team members expressed their gratitude for senior military leaders' commitment to ensuring they are trained and well supported.
Army Capt. Justin Kimmel, an Army nurse based at Tripler Army Medical Center, Hawaii, said the team felt reassured by visits from Horoho and the earlier visit from Army Gen. Charles H. Jacoby Jr., commander of U.S. Northern Command and NORAD.
"The biggest thing is knowing that the higher command is basically supportive of us and is willing to give us whatever resources we need to get the mission accomplished," he said.
"That they're thinking about not only how we're going to take care of the patients," Kimmel said, "but also if something were to happen for us, how we're going to be supportive and how our families are going to be supported."
Reassuring
It's reassuring, he said, so that the team is able to focus more on the mission than having to worry about how they and their families are going to be taken care of.
Kimmel said he felt "honored" that the nation has called upon military medicine in its time of need.
"I feel honored that America's putting that kind of trust in us," he said. "We're kind of like the 911 responders being called. It's one of those things that you pray it doesn't happen but you prepare -- 'plan for the worst, hope for the best.'"
"So hopefully we never get that call," Kimmel said, "but it's better to have that kind of back up; that responsiveness."
Air Force Capt. Stacey Morgan, a clinical nurse and Baltimore native based at SAMMC, San Antonio Military Medical Center, said she feels better as the team's proficiency continues to grow.
Overwhelming at First
"I'm feeling better every day," she said. "The first day was overwhelming putting on all of the gear. It's a little nerve wracking to think about the potential for infection and things like that."
"After another day of practice putting on all the gear and taking it all off," Morgan said, "I think everyone was feeling a lot better. I know I am for sure."
Morgan said she was pleased to have the opportunity to be a part of the specialized joint team of DoD medical professionals.
"I'm very honored to be on this team, and I think that it is a mission that America is really looking at," she said.
"I hope that we can kind of calm some of the nerves and some of the stigma that's going on," Morgan added. "So hopefully we can kind of smooth things over a little and make the nation feel a little safer."
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