Photo By Sgt. Michael Ybarra | Capt. Zachariah Clark, family medicine physician,, U.S. Army Medical Department...... read more read more
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MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU, Romania-- Light chatter fills the lobby of the medical aid station at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, Romania, as U.S. Army Soldiers wait for their appointments. The aid station services about a dozen patients every day, and each one is met with a friendly smile and a welcoming demeanor.
“As far back as I can remember, I have wanted to be an Army physician, just like Dad,” said Capt. Zachariah Clark, a family medicine physician for the U.S. Army, stationed in Hohenfels, Germany, currently on rotation at MKAB. “I even found a journal of mine as an elementary school kid, and it had a picture of ‘future me’ in an Army uniform with a medical badge.”
Clark was born in Bethesda, Maryland, but raised in Hawaii and the state of Washington. He swore his first oath into the U.S. Army as a cadet in June 2005 when he entered the United States Military Academy at West Point.
“I lived a great life as an Army brat and knew that I wanted to give back to the country that gave me so much,” said Clark. “The Army was a great way to serve and challenge myself.”
Clark later commissioned as an officer in 2011, and after completing medical school, joined the Medical Corps as a doctor.
“Family practice gives me a broad knowledge base, allowing me to take care of kids, adults, the elderly and to deliver babies,” said Clark. “It allows me to triage and treat nearly anything that walks through the clinic door, and what I can’t fix, I can send to the specialists.”
Clark said that the large need for family practice physicians gave him many options for duty assignments, special schools, training and opportunities to serve in a variety of capacities.
“The most memorable military training was going to Peru for three weeks to work in the Amazon and Andes on tropical disease research,” said Clark.
Clark said the Army as a whole gave him an excellent education and invaluable mentorship from his leaders as well.
“My favorite thing about the Army is probably all the great people I’ve met along the way,” said Clark. “People from all different backgrounds, countries, religions and creeds who can come together and find a way to make things work.”
Clark plans to make a career out of his time in the Army. After accounting for both his college education and medical training, he’s described his time in service as substantial.
“Serving as an Army ‘doc’ pushes me to maintain high personal and professional standards because I am responsible not only for myself as a Soldier, but also for the well-being of the men and women who I serve alongside,” said Clark. “I’m proud to wear the flag on my shoulder as many before me have and many after me will in the service of our great country and all it stands for.”
| Date Taken: | 08.08.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 08.08.2019 08:57 |
| Story ID: | 335036 |
| Location: | MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU, RO |
| Hometown: | HOHENFELS, BY, DE |
| Web Views: | 623 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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