Subscribe
CAMP STEPHENSON, Guyana – During TRADEWINDS 2023 (July 14-28), a multinational, joint military training exercise, two preventive medicine soldiers from the 791st Preventive Medicine Detachment conducted base camp assessments to ensure the health and safety of the troops.
Preventive medicine specialists (68S) are a vital piece to the success of a mission. "Our inspections provide commanders with identified health risks and recommendations of corrective actions to ensure the health and welfare of soldiers in accordance with Army Regulations," said Staff Sgt. Michelle Tolbert.
TRADEWINDS 2023 is a U.S. Southern Command (SOCOM)-sponsored multidimensional exercise designed to strengthen partner nations across land, air, sea, and cyber by focusing on security threats, interoperability, promoting human rights, and training in disaster and crisis management operations.
Mr. Jeffrey Bridges, an Army SOCOM medical planner, emphasized, "People can't function because they're sick from various problems, be it from the food, improper water source, and stuff not being prepared properly; it is very detrimental to the mission."
TRADEWINDS 23 takes place in various locations throughout Guyana. "It is hot and humid with intermittent rainfall. Guyana has a lot of groundwater with an abundance of foliage, mosquitoes, red ants, stray animals, and flies," said Tolbert.
When the 791st Preventive Medicine (PM) team, Tolbert and Staff Sgt. Elizabeth McCulley landed they immediately performed a base camp assessment (BCA). "Throughout the BCA, environmental samples will be evaluated through various laboratory measures, which will then permit the PM personnel to generate a memorandum for record of the BCA, which provides the officer in charge (OIC) a comprehensive report of identified health risks and recommendations necessary to remedy identified health hazards in accordance with Army regulations. This report will provide the OIC the results of the environmental samples collected compared to Army standards and pictures of any deficiencies identified," said Tolbert.
"We look for environmental and occupational health hazards, which included water sampling, air pollution exposures, soil contamination, food sanitation, noise pollution, epidemiology/transmission of diseases, tracking disease non-battle injuries (DNBIs), regulated medical waste, hazmat, medical zoology/medically relevant vectors that transmit diseases (such as mosquitoes), pest management, waste management, heat stress, clinical and community public health," continued Tolbert.
"The primary issues we saw when getting on the ground were occupational health hazards such as generators being too close to the billeting areas, no fire extinguishers next to the generators, electrical wires without adequate coverage to protect from the rain, no handwashing stations, standing water in the hygiene trailers, and improper storage of unitized group rations," said Tolbert. "We reported the deficiencies during the battle update brief with recommendations to remedy the hazard. The recommendations were considered and implemented accordingly to reduce health-related hazards."
"They were really well versed in this craft, even to the point where not only did they identify the issues, they provided mitigation measures and solutions," said Bridges. "These are not always received as they are given, but that's where I play a part and go back and educate the command…but the command can always assume the risk."
"This is one of the better teams that I've worked with in my 35 years of being a soldier…we have competent and qualified people that can do the job awesome," said Bridges.
Bridges explained that medical planning encompasses more than medicine and treatment. There is an environmental aspect to it that many might need help understanding.
TRADEWINDS allows the U.S. and participating nations to improve interoperability and effectively execute future maritime and land operations by exchanging knowledge and expertise.
As Tolbert performs her duties during TRADEWINDS, she looks forward to working with U.S. and partner nation personnel to improve international relationships and share knowledge and/or skill sets to accomplish missions in various Guyana locations.
By Sgt. Mikayla Fritz, U.S. Army Reserve, 807th Medical Command
| Date Taken: | 07.15.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 07.23.2023 14:27 |
| Story ID: | 449817 |
| Location: | CAMP STEPHENSON, GY |
| Hometown: | SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, US |
| Web Views: | 172 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, 791st Preventive Medicine provides base camp assessment, Tradewinds23, by SSG Mikayla Fritz, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
