Photo By Master Sgt. Kelly Ogden | Tech. Sgt. Shirere Carter, a dental admin non-commissioned officer from the 99th...... read more read more
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BELIZE CITY, Belize - She’s the first person you see when entering the makeshift dental clinic in Belize City, Belize.
Tech. Sgt. Shirene Carter, a dental admin non-commissioned officer from the 99th Dental Squadron, Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, is in the country supporting the U.S. Southern Command sponsored New Horizons exercise.
During the exercise, medical practitioners are receiving training that helps them prepare for overseas deployments by providing care to people who may not have had easy access to healthcare in the past.
In two short weeks, Carter has checked in and documented records for more than 700 Belizean dental patients.
This is her first deployment.
“It’s been so rewarding just to see the patients,” she said. “The Belizean people are so humble and thankful.”
She also said that this exercise has been the best experience that she’s had in her entire Air Force career and that she’s valued the training that she’s received here.
“It helps us to do more with less,” Carter said. “We have to use what we have…it’s not like back at home station where supplies are abundant.”
The pace is quick, days are long and breaks are limited. The dentists here are seeing 8-10 patients per day.
“Back home each doctor may only see maybe half of the amount of patients that what we see here each day,” she said. “Our mission here is to give fast, but quality care.”
Carter says that being able to work with Canadian dentists and technicians is an added bonus.
“The teamwork has been so wonderful,” said Carter. “We help each other clean and turn over chairs while learning about one another’s culture.”
Knowing how to operate jointly with partner nation militaries makes everyone better and gives U.S. personnel the opportunity to hone skills and learn best practices from different regions of the world. It also enables all involved to jointly respond to crises and increases the ability of partner nation participants to provide aid locally and to regional partners.
| Date Taken: | 06.26.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2014 22:35 |
| Story ID: | 134594 |
| Location: | BELIZE CITY, BZ |
| Web Views: | 555 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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