Helping was always the choice he was going to make: US Navy Corpsman reflects on career, values

Photo By Cpl. Calah Thompson | U.S. Navy Commander Fernandez Dominick, the Marine Aircraft Group (MAG)12 psychiatrist at the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni Naval Family Branch Clinic, explains the mental health road map to U.S. Navy Corpsman 3rd Class Christopher Solis, a general duty corpsman with Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS) 171, right, at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan, November 22, 2022. Since enlisting in the U.S. Navy in November 2017, Solis has worked alongside Marines and earned the Fleet Marine Force pin, which represents a rite of passage for all Corpsmen working alongside Marines. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Calah Thompson)  

IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JAPAN

12.01.2022

Story by Cpl. Calah Thompson 

Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan - "Life's too short to be cruel, it really is. I can't fathom having so little to do that one can find the time to be a nuisance to others." Since hearing this as a child, Christopher Solis held it as something to live by. He felt that if there was a choice to help someone - even something as simple as being someone's companion - helping was always the choice he was going to make.

Now a U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class, Solis continues to live by this philosophy and has found ways to apply it in his career as a general duty corpsman with Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS) 17 at the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni Branch Health Clinic, where he dedicates his time on the job to aiding his peers in a mentorship capacity and offering help to anyone who he crosses paths with.

Working alongside Marines has helped Solis learn the different aspects of providing aid; sometimes on a firing range or during a patrol, and other times as a confidant too.

Throughout Solis's time as a corpsman, he has frequently had to sacrifice personal time to stay late or come into work early to call patients, restock medications, and train new personnel.

"If we shrugged off a patient or didn't pay as much attention as we do, it could very well lead to missing a very important flag that someone needs help, or just lead to malpractice," Solis said. "Touching as many lives as we do, making that positive impact is worth its weight in gold, and that's not something I would ever give up."

Through all the memories of being a corpsman, Solis recalls one instance in which a patient who checked in for a prescription refill began talking with him about the emotional trauma burdening her, and a month later thanking him for being the listening ear she needed in a time of high distress. That memory is one Solis says made him reflect on the importance of his job, and since then has shown a special interest in helping people in the mental health department, where he has been learning and working with the clinic's psychiatry program.

"Doc Solis is a very humble guy, so he would probably never tell you himself, but he has been excelling working with the psychiatry program," said U.S. Navy Commander Dominick Fernandez, the Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 12 psychiatrist. "He has been working and learning more about what we do, on his own accord and though he might not have the same training as some of the nurses, he has proven himself to be on par."

Helping service members in this capacity provides each patient with the resources and help he or she may need without needing to undergo the daunting nature of explaining what he or she is going through to a stranger. Having a familiar face who has experience, like Solis, makes the process easier on the patient, and helps build rapport among the medical professional and patient.

In a career where there is always a choice to help someone - even something as simple as being someone's companion - helping continues to be a choice Solis makes in his profession as a corpsman; whether it be treating a physical wound or being a companion and listening ear to others.

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• Date Taken: 12.01.2022
• Date Posted: 12.01.2022 23:39
• Story ID: 434266
• Location: IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JP