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KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – What he originally thought was “cool” has turned into a passion and a formidable career for U.S. Navy Commander Chris Neal.
Neal, a neurosurgeon at the Role 3 NATO Multi-National Medical Unit, Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, has “seen it all” when it comes to neurology.
“I thought (Neuroscience) was cool, and after I got some experience with surgery, and really being able to be hands on, I have loved it, and haven’t looked back since,” he said.
It all started when Neal graduated high school and was immediately accepted into medical school to study neurology at the University of Missouri-Columbia, before eventually being accepted into a program to become a doctor in the U.S. Navy, which he serves at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.
That position is where he grew to love working with service members, especially in a joint-service environment he says.
“I enjoy the joint-service environment we have at Walter Reed,” he said. “Because at the end of the day medicine is medicine, no matter what service you are in. You’re stronger together.”
Before his current assignment in Afghanistan, Neal did a tour at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.
It was there where Neal was faced with “the most memorable moment in my career.”
While working as a neurosurgeon, a soldier came into the hospital with a gunshot wound to the head, requiring immediate surgery in order to survive.
“He was not doing well at all. We had determined that we needed to take part of his skull off to let the brain swelling go down without causing damage to it, and with that, always comes complications,” Neal said.
Before continuing his story, Neal elaborated on how intricate brain surgery is, and that it is always a difficult decision to go ahead and perform surgery.
“It is hard because you are unsure how that person’s quality of life will be,” he said. “Will they be able to get up and walk around, and function like a normal person if I do this surgery? It is the hardest part of my job, because you want the best for them and to have the best life possible.”
Neal decided to go with surgery, and the initial results were not looking good.
“I had to tell the family, he may very well die, the injury he sustained was a very serious one,” he said.
The soldier continued to live, but Neal was soon to head back to Walter Reed, as his tour in Landstuhl was coming to an end.
He was unaware of the soldier’s conditions until his first day back at Walter Reed.
While reviewing the rehab list, he saw a familiar name.
“I said, wait a minute, I know this guy,” Neal said. “So I went up to the rehab floor and who do I see, the soldier and his family.”
Neal went on to talk about the reaction he had with the soldier, who had pulled through and was gradually progressing.
“His mom came up and hugged me and cried,” he said. “But the soldier had no idea who I was, didn’t recognize me. He didn’t know I was the one who performed surgery on him.”
It is memorable moments like that that keeps Neal motivated and passionate about his job.
“I guess that is why I do this stuff,” he said with a smile.
Neal went on to volunteer for a deployment to Afghanistan, where he is the top neurosurgeon at the Role 3, seeing every service member that comes in with head-related trauma or injury.
On top of that Neal has performed surgery on local Afghans who have been taken to the hospital, including one man who was severely injured and “made us question ourselves whether or not he was going to make it.”
Much like the soldier in Germany, the man gradually progressed.
“For a week or so, we really weren’t sure; but then one day his eyes opened up, and he progressed enough to where his brother could come in and spend time with him,” he said.
The man’s brother, with tears in his eyes, gave Neal something he “will never forget.”
“He came up to me and said, ‘this is worth a thank you,’” Neal said.
With the amount of things he has seen and the number of lives he has touched, Neal credits all of his experiences to his work ethic; something he says “got me where I am today.”
“I am a workhorse, I take pride in being a hard worker,” he said. “And doing some of the things I have been able to do, this has all been worth it.”
| Date Taken: | 03.18.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 03.18.2014 10:33 |
| Story ID: | 122155 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, AF |
| Hometown: | BETHESDA, MD, US |
| Hometown: | KANSAS CITY, MO, US |
| Web Views: | 857 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Passion for Neurosciences, helping service members, motivates Navy officer, by SGT Clay Beyersdorfer, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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