By Master Sgt. Peter R. Sutherland
30th Medical Brigade
LIBREVILLE, Gabon – The 212th Combat Support Hospital provided expeditionary medical support to U.S. Army Africa’s exercise Central Accord 16 in Gabon June 11 to 28, 2016.
The 212th CSH deployed a Modified Early-Entry Package, a medical treatment facility with trauma resuscitation, surgical, pharmacy, laboratory, and intensive care capabilities, to provide this NATO Role II facility to this exercise. Capabilities of this MEEP allows the medical team to provide damage control resuscitative surgery in a field environment.
The twelve medical personnel from the Medical Readiness Training Exercise 16-4 (May 22 to June 17, 2016) of 212th CSH linked up with the 21 incoming personnel from home station to staff the NATO Role II medical facility.
The combined team worked side-by-side with the Gabonese Role II facility whose real-world mission was to provide medical care to the largest Accord exercise to date.
From June 11 to June 28, the Central Accord 16 exercise conducted three major operations; French Jungle Warfare School, Airborne Operations, and finally the Gabonese military’s first Live Fire Exercise. Each of these phases of the exercise had potential risk for traumatic injury for Soldiers participating, but the 212th CSH medical team was ready to receive and treat any that came their way.