Alaska Native Medical Center charge nurse uses medical skills while deployed to OIF

IRAQ

07.25.2006

Courtesy Story

Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve

by Senior Master Sgt. Darenda Rogers
ESGR Forward Team

IRAQ – Alaska Air National Guard Capt. Michael Lyons, a charge nurse on 5-West of the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, Alaska is currently deployed to Baghdad, Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the official name given to military operations assisting in rebuilding Iraq's economic and governmental infrastructure, training and preparing Iraqi military and security forces to assume full authority and responsibility in defending and preserving Iraq's sovereignty and independence as a democracy.

"Being without my wife has been the hardest part of this deployment," Lyons stated. In spite of these challenges, however, Lyons said that being part of Operation Iraqi Freedom helps to make up for any hardships that he may encounter.

Active duty and reserve component members from all branches of the U.S. armed forces are deployed under the U.S. Central Command to support the war against global terrorism outside the borders of the United States.

U.S. Central Command is the unified command responsible for U.S. security interests and assets in 27 nations stretching from the Horn of Africa, through the Arabian Gulf region, and into Central Asia.

In Baghdad, Lyons serves as a clinical nurse for the 447th Air Expeditionary Group, Expeditionary Medical Support. He works in the emergency room, the recovery room, and inpatient support ward. The captain has served in the military for 22 years; this is his second deployment overseas.

Lyons, employed by the Alaska Native Medical Center as a charge nurse in Five-West for the last four years, works out of Anchorage, Alaska. Lyons expressed gratitude for his employer's support. He said, "my employer has always supported my military duties with the Alaska Air National Guard."

Today, more than 1.2 million members of the National Guard and Reserve continue to perform an increasing number of unique missions that require extraordinary actions on the part of everyday citizens.

Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) is the primary resource for information about the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, commonly known as USERRA. This federal law allows Lyons and other mobilized reserve component members to retain their rights, when the deployment concludes.

Established in 1972, Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), a DoD agency, provides free USERRA education, consultation, and if necessary, mediation for employers of Guard and Reserve employees.

The mission of ESGR is to gain and maintain active support from all public and private employers for the men and women of the National Guard and Reserve. More information about ESGR Employer Outreach Programs and volunteer opportunities is available at www.esgr.mil, or by calling the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve at [phone].

Since the skills required of his civilian and military positions overlap, Lyons indicated that he will bring a fresh perspective of nursing back to his employer as a result of applying his nursing skills in the field. Although Lyons is grateful for his "chance to do my part for the USA," he is looking forward to "returning to his wife and eating out."

Lyons and his wife, Marie Jane, call Anchorage, Alaska home.

• Date Taken: 07.25.2006
• Date Posted: 07.25.2006 13:20
• Story ID: 7304
• Location: IQ