Photo By Nell King | U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Nadja West takes the oath of office after promotion to her current...... read more read more
JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON HALL, Va. - Lt. Gen. Nadja West, 44th surgeon general of the U.S. Army and Commanding General of U.S. Army Medical Command (MEDCOM), received her third star during a promotion and swearing-in ceremony at Conmy Hall on the Fort Myer portion of Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall Feb. 9.
The Senate confirmed West as the new surgeon general in December 2015. On Wednesday, she received the promotion to her current rank that accompanies her new title in front of family, friends, West Point classmates and military leaders.
With this appointment, West becomes the first African-American Army surgeon general and the highest ranking female to have graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
During the ceremony, Gen. Mark Milley, Army chief of staff, said West’s appointment was the latest great achievement in a long familial history of military service.
“This is quite a family,” Milley said. “It’s an incredible military family, and it has an impressive history of service to our nation.
“Her father served in the Army for 33 years,” Milley said. “He joined our Army in 1939, before desegregation. He believed then, and I would tell him it’s true now, that the Army is a great leveler … He’s not with us today. But his daughter is living proof of his dream.”
Milley said West’s parents adopted 12 children, of whom Nadja is the youngest. Ten of them served in the military, including the Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Once orphans in Washing-ton, D.C., West and her siblings were instilled by their adoptive parents with a pride in the profession of arms, Milley said.
“My brothers and sisters led by example,” West said during her remarks, recalling one particular moment walking to school with her older brother.
“I was holding his hand and I was skipping along,” she said. “He had his uniform on and I was so proud because I was going to show my classmates that my brother was a Soldier … That’s an early memory that stayed with me forever.”
West said she wouldn’t be where she is today if it wasn’t for the people who had helped her achieve her success.
“I’m a living testament that I have only gotten this far by going together with the literally thou-sands who have supported me along the way,” she said.
In an interview after the ceremony, West said one of her top priorities as surgeon general is force readiness.
“My job will be to ensure that, from a health care aspect, that I can enhance the readiness of our Soldiers, their families and those who are entrusted to our care,” she said.
That means making sure the Army has a medical force that will be prepared to do whatever the nation may need, she said.
West also shared some advice for junior enlisted service members.
“There’s no limit to what you can do or what you can accomplish if you put your mind to it,” she said. “If you can tell from my background, there’s no limits. No matter what your beginnings are, you can aspire to be anything you want.”
Prior to her appointment, West most recently served as the joint staff surgeon at the Pentagon. She is a graduate of the United States Military Academy with a bachelor of science degree in engineering. She also earned a doctorate of medicine degree from the George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington.
As Army surgeon general, West advises the secretary of the Army and Army chief of staff on all health care issues pertaining to the Army and its military health care system. That includes development, policy direction and management of an Army-wide health service system.
She’ll also be responsible for formulating policy regulations on health service support, health hazard assessment and the establishment of health standards.
And as MEDCOM commanding general, West will oversee more than 48 medical treatment facilities providing care to nearly 4 million active duty members of all services, retirees and their family members.
| Date Taken: | 02.11.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 02.11.2016 12:33 |
| Story ID: | 188601 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON HALL, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 301 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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