Medical, dental services part of humanitarian mission of African Lion 2011

Photo By Sgt. Rebecca Hansen | Air Force Col. Paul Byrd, commander of the 151st Expeditionary Medical Group, Utah Air National Guard entertains some of the children waiting their turn to see a pediatric doctor during the Humanitarian and Civic Assistance portion of exercise African Lion 2011; a bilateral exercise designed to promote interoperability and mutual understanding of each nation’s military tactics, techniques and procedure.  

AGADIR, MOROCCO

05.24.2011

Story by Sgt. Rebecca Hansen 

U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Europe and Africa     

AGADIR, Morocco –After filling the bus compartment with medical equipment and pharmaceuticals, the service members loaded the bus during the early morning hours. After a short bus ride out of the city to the rural areas, they neared their destination and the anticipation rose as everyone looked out their windows and saw the masses of people waiting for them to arrive.

A large group of U.S. service members from all branches of the military and their counterparts from the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces teamed together and provided medical care to five different villages surrounding Agadir May 22 through the 27 as part of the Humanitarian and Civic Assistance portion of the bilateral exercise, African Lion 2011.

The five towns chosen for the mission of the HCA were chosen at the discretion of the Moroccan Ministry of Health and included Tamsia, Tassguedelt, Had Belffaa, Tifnit, and Ait Baha. The people from the various villages waited sometimes hours before seeing a doctor.

“Our mission is to provide medical care to as many people in five days as we can,” said Air Force Col. Paul Byrd, commander of the 151st Expeditionary Medical Group, Utah Air National Guard.

The mission served a duel purpose, the service members were able to provide medical care to those in need, and then they were able to work side-by-side with their Moroccan counterparts, sharing knowledge between them.

“[The HCA] allows us and the host nation to provide care to indigenous people and get some bilateral training as well,” said U.S. Navy Cmdr. Brett English, medical operations officer, Health Service Support, 4th Marine Division. English has been a licensed pharmacist since 1998 and this is his third year as the pharmacist officer in charge for the HCA.

The HCA provides a number of different services to the various villages to include internal medicine, general medicine, pediatrics, cardiology, dermatology, obstetrics, ear nose and throat, dental, and optometry.

Also, the group brought their own personal pharmacy with them stocked with easily obtainable, generic medicine. The top three types of medication brought that usually run out first, were anti-inflammatory, pain/fever reducer, and dermatology topical creams that can treat multiple conditions. The other three types of medications brought were gastro intestinal, eye medications, and antibiotics that treat short term, acute conditions.

One of major sections was the dental section. When a patient arrives the dentists and dental assistants do their own triage to find the best way to help them and take X-rays of their teeth.

“We did a lot of tooth extractions and tooth composite fillings, or color filings including silver,” said U.S. Navy Reserves Petty Officer First Class Lisa H. Wark, of Houston, Texas and a dental assistant with 4th Dental Battalion.

When some of the doctors found they had some down time, they would try to entertain some of the patients while they were waiting their turn. Air Force Lt. Col. Ron Ulberg, a nurse with the 151st EMG, was one who entertained the children by putting water based tattoos on their hands of smiley faces and pirate cross bones while whistling a tune.

“[The Moroccans] are really no different then we are at home,” said Ulberg, “when you give a child crayons and notebooks, the mother beams and are thrilled you paid attention to their child and made them smile.”

In the pediatric section, after being looked at by the physicians, the children received pencils, crayons, and paper, as well as, soccer equipment which was mostly collected by Tanner Beeston, a youth from Lehi, Utah as part of his eagle scout project. He sent out flyers as and went door-to-door asking for donations.

African Lion is an exercise designed to promote interoperability and mutual understanding of each nation’s military tactics, techniques and procedures, and true to that the service members worked side-by-side with members of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces while treating the Moroccan people.

“We get a little bit of bilateral training while strategically building international relations,” said English.

After five days of traveling around to the surrounding areas of Agadir providing medical care, the service members ended up treating nearly 4,500 patients in the areas of internal medicine, general medicine, pediatrics, cardiology, dermatology, obstetrics, ear nose and throat, dental, and optometry.

“You get in your own little world and when you think of something in Morocco you don’t know what’s there, or who,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Richard Sharp, flight surgeon, 151st Medical Group, Utah Air National Guard, working as a pediatrician for the HCA. “The big thing is you come over here and you figure out that most people are the same no matter where you go. They want to feel well and happy.”

• Date Taken: 05.24.2011
• Date Posted: 06.02.2011 10:48
• Story ID: 71474
• Location: AGADIR, MA