CAIRO, Ill.—Service members from the U.S. Army, Army Reserves, and the Naval Ophthalmic Training Support Activity (NOSTRA), joined forces with civil authorities to provide medical care at no-cost to residents at the Cairo Junior/Senior High School from June 16-27, 2014.
Innovative Readiness Training exercise Southern Care 2014 provides real world training opportunities for military medical units to prepare for wartime and humanitarian missions while supporting the needs of America’s medically underserved populations.
“This is a splendid thing,” Johnny Posey, a long-time Cairo resident, said. “It’s needed and it serves this area well.”
Posey, a local pastor and Vietnam combat veteran, talked about how Cairo was a booming community in the 1950’s. “Everyone came to shop at Cairo but now we have very little in our community.”
“In the 1950’s, a person living in Cairo that didn’t work, wasn’t because they couldn’t find a job,” Posey reminisced. Now unemployment in the county is one of the highest in Illinois.
“The citizens are loving it and all say they are so glad we came,” 2nd Lt. Toni Walker of the 810th Medical Company/ 49th Multifunctional Medical Battalion out of Charleston, S.C. and officer-in charge of the Cairo site, said. “By 7:30 am, we already have people waiting and most are coming in for dental extractions.”
“Even if you have dental insurance, it doesn’t cover everything,” Terri Childs, a Cairo resident, said. “This is so helpful because even with insurance it would have still cost $75 to get this done.”
These real world training exercises are very beneficial to military medical units and giving back to the community makes for high moral.
“My troops work hard until late at night and they come back in the morning just as happy,” Walker said.
IRT exercise Southern Care 2014 will continue provide medical care consisting of medical screenings, optometry and dental services through June 27, 2014 at three sites in Southern Illinois:
Cairo Junior/Senior High School, 4201 Sycamore Street
Harrisburg Middle School, 312 Bulldog Boulevard
Marion Junior High School, 1609 W. Main Street