United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM)

Web Log from Comfort`s mission commander,
Navy Capt. Bob Kapcio

Oct 13, 2007 07:33

We woke up Friday morning with the skyscrapers of Miami visible just in the distance. We were back in the U.S., and it was a welcome site. We were also back in range of U.S. cellular phone coverage, which a good amount of the crew was very happy about!

The day was all about recognition. We hosted our brand new Chief of Naval Operations ADM Gary Roughead along with MCPON (Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy) Joe Campa, Rear Adm. Richard Jeffries (Regional Commander, Navy Medicine Capital Region Area), Rear Adm. Harry Harris (Director of Operations for SOUTHCOM) and other distinguished visitors. They came aboard to welcome us back to the states, to celebrate our accomplishments and the Navy’s 232nd birthday, and to award the crew a Meritorious Unit Commendation for our hard work these four months. It was a beautiful day, and the setting was great as the CNO thanked us for our work, presented the award and then re-enlisted four outstanding Sailors in front of the crew, all covered by media.

After we finished with all the festivities, we got underway again for the remainder of our journey back to Norfolk.

The crew has been busy these days since I wrote the last time as we prepare the ship and ourselves for our homecoming. Cleaning, stowing gear, packing things up and making travel arrangement have been our major activities.

It will be a busy day again on the 15th when we arrive in Norfolk. We are planning to host a few more visitors and conduct a press conference. And of course we are looking forward to a warm welcome by many of the crew’s family members! There are about 740 crew members aboard, of which around 550 will be getting off the ship in Norfolk. Part of the 550 will be me and my staff from DESRON 24. We will be heading back to Jacksonville for our own homecoming celebration with our families Monday afternoon. The ship will remain in Norfolk for a few more days to off-load equipment before she makes her way to the final stop of the trip – Baltimore.

As we make our way home, the crew has been talking about where we’ve been, what we’ve done and the lives we’ve changed. We’ve been swapping stories and photos as well as addresses to keep in touch when everyone scatters to the places they call home. It is a bittersweet end, of course. We’ve made good friends and shared an experience that, while we know we’ve changed the lives of those we’ve helped, we know has changed us, too.

It’s impossible to have gone to some of the places we’ve been – and see how some people live -- and not come away changed by that. A lot of the places we’ve gone sometimes seemed to be where the populations we were serving were those in great need. They have probably never met Americans and they have had little healthcare. We’ve been able to go in and do our work, and hopefully make a small impact on these peoples’ lives.

But what is so much more important to me and to every one of our team members is the personal touch. That’s what will leave a lasting impression. The human touch is what’s made the difference. This was so much more than a medical mission. This mission was about making connections with others that bridge all differences in language, difference or culture. That’s what it’s been about -- human connection.

This is my final entry to my Commodore’s Log. Thank you for coming along with us for the mission. Your positive feedback and good wishes have helped keep us going. I guess the human connection we’ve tried to make has many more layers than I originally realized. I hope in some way we’ve touched you with our story, and I hope that this human connection keeps growing even as our mission comes to a close.

Oct 07, 2007 19:28

Our mission is almost done. The only thing left is a safe journey home and some fun off the coast of Miami. We are still counting the numbers up, but it looks like we’re going to be at around 98,000 patients seen and 1,170 surgeries performed during our 120-day deployment. I’ve been on many deployments in my career, and this one, as you can probably guess, was one of the most satisfying....... in a very different way.

It was quite the week, full of cooperative care working alongside our Suriname hosts to provide services in our last country to complete our mission. Our distinguished guests to the ship in Suriname included Ambassador Schreiber Hughes, Minister of Defense Fernald, Acting Minister of Health Michel Felisi, Minister of Justice and Peace Chandrikapersad Santokhi, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Senior Military Assistant to SECDEF Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli and Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense & American Security Affairs Paul McHale. Our week ended Saturday with the visit by Secretary Gates and then a closing ceremony at the Suriname Presidential Palace. It was quite the closing ceremony!! This week -- and this deployment -- will be something I always remember.

It’s been a long four months full of hard work, lots of sweat and many, many long nights. As hard as we’ve worked, though, I get the sense in talking to the crew that most of us have mixed feelings about our mission. We’re ready to go home, but many wish we could keep going. I think we’re realistic enough to understand that there will always be more work to do, more people to help. We simply can’t help everyone and can’t fill every need, though.

I think we’ve laid the groundwork for great things that can be accomplished in the future. As we used the lessons learned from USNS Mercy’s deployments, we are gathering our lessons learned to pass on to the next group of humanitarian deployers.

We departed Suriname waters this morning heading north toward the United States – heading home. Heading home..... knowing we have changed many lives but also knowing that for many in the crew, their own lives have been changed by what they saw, what they accomplished, and the many new friends they have met.

Oct 04, 2007 07:57

Wow, where did the time go? It’s Oct. 3rd and we’re already on mission day two of Suriname, the last country in our four-month journey. While we are busy planning for homecoming events just around the corner, we are still very much focused on providing the best care we can to the people of Suriname.

I say “we” in a different sense in that we’re collaborating with host nation health care officials to provide “cooperative care.” We’re working side-by-side with providers here, but Suriname is also providing a healthy amount of ancillary service support such as pharmacy. This allows us to significantly reduce our need to transport supplies, equipment and people to shore every day. It’s a huge thing for us since we spend 25-30 minutes on a helo just getting from the ship to the helo landing zone. From there we have to transport everyone to their work sites. The logistics of this people movement is tough, but we’re making it work.

We got here Oct. 1, and I had the honor of participating with Ambassador Lisa Bobbie Schreiber Hughes and Minister of Defense Fernald in Comfort’s final opening ceremony, held at the Foundation for Dental Care on Oct. 2. Afterward we were given a tour of the facility, which was set up and ready to serve the first patients, who came in on two buses from a local orphanage.

I wanted to share with you a little of what I said at the opening ceremony to give you a sense of how we feel about being here.

"It is an honor for me and the crew of the USNS COMFORT to be here in Suriname. We have been looking forward to this part of our trip and anticipate working together with your medical professionals and to provide medical services and training to those in need.

The Comfort’s trip to Latin America is part of the commitment by President Bush to continue our country’s longstanding investment in the people of this region. Additionally, this deployment is part of U.S. Southern Commands regional focus under the Partnership for the Americas plan. On behalf of Adm Stavridis, I want to tell you that the U.S. Southern Command is dedicated to working together with regional medical providers to help determine cooperative solutions to key health issues. Suriname is the 12th of 12 countries we are visiting and providing assistance, and we look forward to bringing the skills of the people aboard this unique, first-class ship, to our friends and partners here in Suriname. …

This deployment is truly a joint civil-military team. We have more than 200 different organizations represented on COMFORT to include the Navy, Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, the U.S. Public Health Service, Canadians, and volunteers from Project Hope. We have had donations of medical equipment and medicines from all over the United States. A hospital system in Green Bay, Wisconsin, donated medical equipment for us to give away, and the Lions Club of America donated 30,000 pairs of glasses. These are just a few examples of the spirit of community involvement and volunteerism that is one of the trademarks of the United States of America.

In addition to the medical care we plan to provide while here in Suriname, we also plan to deliver more than $10,000 dollars in medical equipment and supplies to the local community through Project Handclasp, International Aid and Project Hope. Our Naval Construction Battalion, better known as the SEABEEs, will be building jungle jims at local clinics. …

This mission is a win-win for all involved. We are honored to be here in your beautiful country and look forward to getting to know you and helping together to better the lives of the Suriname people. We are here to try and make a difference not just in the short term but in the long term as well. The United States is committed to cooperative partnerships with our friends in this region. …

In closing, I can say on behalf of the entire crew of the COMFORT, being able to help those who reach out to us and make their futures brighter is what makes this mission special. Thank you."

I have said most of these words many times over the last four months. Each time I truly mean them. We’ve used the terms “partnership” and “cooperation” a lot in these months. Our cooperative work in Suriname is a perfect example of the spirit and intent of this mission.

Sep 30, 2007 22:46

This week in Guyana has been a little longer than the other countries we’ve worked in, but that was intentional. I mentioned in my last log entry that we’re anchored about 14 nautical miles off the coast of Georgetown. It takes time to transport everyone this distance to shore every day. It translates into more wait time for the crew since we can move only 10 people at a time in each helicopter. We knew going into this country that this wait would also translate into less time on shore working ... but we have done a ton of work here because there has been a great team effort from the Ambassador on down through all the U.S. agencies in Guyana and the efforts of the Guyana government officials.

We have been visited on the ship by some very distinguished visitors – President of Guyana H.E. Bharrat Jagdeo, Prime Minister of Guyana Samuel Hinds, and U.S. Ambassador to Guyana David Robinson. I was pleased to be able to escort these gentlemen around the ship and even more pleased to see the smiles on the President’s face as he visited with Guyanese citizens aboard who were receiving medical services and treatment. At the end of his visit, the President of Guyana invited the COMFORT leadership to Sunday brunch. It wasn`t brunch … it was a feast! And it was delicious.

As with other countries, the lines grew at our treatment sites ashore every day we were here. Despite the challenges of the work hours and transportation time, I think we’ve been able to make a significant difference here. One way we were able to make an impact is due to Project Dawn. This is a first-class medical treatment facility that has a clinic downstairs and living space upstairs. We were able to leave 26 crew members ashore each evening at Project Dawn as well as 14 other crew members who stayed in a hotel in Georgetown. This allowed us to provide care for a longer time each day.

We also were able to provide continuing education classes for health care providers in the evenings, which was something we had not been able to do before. During the day, our team members worked side-by-side with Guyanese health care providers, and then in the evening we gave them classes. This is great example of a country truly maximizing our partnership by both working with us and also taking advantage of all the services we can provide.

I want to emphasize what Minister of Health Ramsammy said during the opening ceremony about this being a partnership. The ministry is very proactive, and they’ve reduced their Malaria rate by 86 percent in Guyana. That’s huge! While this is a great success story, there is still a big push here for education. The government of Guyana has been very candid about asking for assistance, and I’m happy that we’ve been able to help provide training as well as help to reduce some of their backlog regarding surgery and primary care.

We depart tomorrow morning for Suriname. I think the entire crew will leave knowing we’ve made a difference here and, more importantly, we’ve laid the groundwork for a lasting partnership with Guyana. In fact, I think you will see several crew members return to Guyana to visit this beautiful country. They may even try something called a Guyana prawn ... grubs pulled from the bark of a tree. Yum, Yum!

Sep 25, 2007 19:26

We arrived late afternoon on Sep. 24 and anchored about 14 nautical miles off the coast of Georgetown, Guyana. We spent a hurried afternoon working to transport people and supplies to shore by helo – we’re so far off shore that boat operations are not an option. Our helos are the only way we’re going to be moving anything between ship and shore.

I, Capt. Boynton, Capt. Nanartowich and Mr. Bob Leitch of Project HOPE flew to shore on the 24th to participate in the opening ceremony for our visit, held at the Georgetown Public Hospital. I was honored to share the opportunity to give remarks along with U.S. Ambassador to Guyana David Robinson, Guyana senior Minister of Health Dr. Leslie Ramsammy and Prime Minister (Acting President) of Guyana Samuel Hinds.

These gentlemen eloquently spoke of their government’s appreciation of Comfort’s anticipated work this week in their country. I wanted to share some of their comments here.

Prime Minister Hinds said during his speech, “Myself and the people of Guyana welcome the Comfort and this much needed and anticipated program of kind assistance to be extended to the Guyanese people. Guyana and Guyanese have many needs. The U.S. and Guyana have a strong partnership and we have the greatest appreciation for the services that are being offered.”

He went on to talk about the close relationship between our countries, saying “Perhaps one-third of the people living today who were born in Guyana are today in the U.S.A., citizens of the U.S.A., benefiting from, and I hope, contributing to what the U.S.A. is. … I must express the government of Guyana’s gratitude to his Excellency President Bush for this initiative.”

Minister of Health Ramsammy said, “I am grateful and I want to say this quite openly, that in all my interaction with U.S. agencies, there was never a condition of as to who Guyana chose to be friends with. This is a partnership between our two countries’ aspirations, our hopes, and Guyana is grateful for the partnership we’ve had in the past and now. All I can see for the future is an even stronger U.S./Guyana relationship that will be for the benefit of Guyanese and also for the U.S.”

This comment he made was especially eloquent, I think: “The work that the U.S. medical personnel do in Guyana contributes to uplifting our system, but they also learn from us. While it may just be a little from our side – a small step for them to come here and a big step for us, the little they learn from us may be a big step for them. This is real partnership and I think we should see it in that context.”

I echo the heartfelt sentiments of these two dynamic leaders. We are happy to be here, and we expect to learn a great deal from our experiences here. This is a partnership forging for us, as we all collaboratively work together for the good of everyone regardless of nationality.

Sep 22, 2007 22:02

Trinidad was a very interesting country to work in. As I said before, we had much more complicated surgeries in this country, but our crack team of surgeons still managed to perform 99 surgeries. Trinidad and Tobago also asked for more education and training, which our strong training team on Comfort was readily able to provide. We didn’t perform as many biomedical equipment repairs as we’ve done in other countries. That is an indication of a relatively strong infrastructure already in place in country. We were happy to partner with these impressive professionals in TTO!

The heat and humidity made our work at the clinics very challenging. As usual, the dedicated professionals on this crew gave it their all every single day.

This mission is refreshing that way. While the crew is starting to talk more about going home, they’re still focused on the mission, and it couldn’t be going any better.

Originally we were supposed to be anchored of the coast of Trinidad, but we actually went pier side. Going pier side makes everything easier. Pre-op screenings were done on the pier, for example, and then the surgery patients would walk right up the brow and onto the ship.

We also conducted dental procedures right on the pier and also in our shipboard dental clinic, which was the first time we’ve done that during this deployment. If you’re keeping tabs from my previous posts, that’s yet another first for us.

All this was possible because our ship master, Capt. Ed Nanartowich, was able to find a way to get Comfort to the pier. We were told, in fact, that Comfort was the longest ship (by 50 meters) to ever dock at the Cruise Ship Terminal in Port-of-Spain – ha, another first!

Our week in Trinidad was rounded out by visits from the U.S. Ambassador to Haiti, the TTO Minister of Health, the Chief of Defense Staff, and the Acting U.S. Surgeon General.

While most people were busy working to execute the mission in Trinidad, others were working hard in preparation for our next country, Guyana. Since our last two mission stops will be helo-only operations due to how far from shore we’ll be anchored, the helo maintenance crews were busy conducting required maintenance to ensure our primary mode of transportation is ready to go.

We left the pier this morning and anchored off of Trinidad to take on fuel. The transit from Trinidad to Guyana is a short one, so we’ll arrive tomorrow morning.

Despite the differences between TTO and the other countries we visited, we left here with the same sense of accomplishment. I am including below an email we got from one of our patients there:

Pleasant good evening sir. … I want to extend my heart-felt thanks to you and your entire crew of the US COMFORT for taking care of me yesterday both in Arima and on board your ship. May God continue to bless and keep you guys safe. Keep up the good work.....THANK YOU AGAIN

Sep 19, 2007 07:39

Hey everyone, we’re back and working. Our break in Curacao was a great time for everyone - lots of volleyball, swimming, snorkeling, sunburns….. and eating!. The team came back to the ship on Sept. 14th refreshed and ready to get back to work. Part of what helps with that rejuvenation is the 40-50 new team members aboard as part of the fourth and final teams from Project Hope, Canadian Forces and U.S. Public Health Service. They follow three outstanding previous teams from each group that were aboard for about a month.

Before I forget, happy birthday Air Force! Although we don’t plan to celebrate with a cake until the 22nd when we leave Trinidad and Tobago, I do want to tip my hat to our 65 Air Force crew members who are a talented and valued part of the Comfort team.

We arrived in Trinidad on Sept. 16. As usual, we started our logistics move and site setup as soon as we could. Rather than the usual opening ceremony, I and Capt. Boynton went out in town and participated in a live TV news talk show and then radio show. Going out for the interviews was my first look at Port-of –Spain, where we are docked. Trinidad is much different than in the other places we’ve been. While at first glance it seems like there is much less need, in fact the needs are different. We’re doing more involved, complicated surgeries, for example.

The heat index here has been over 100 degrees every day, which makes work hours long and hard. But everyone is still going strong. Even though we’ve completed three months of hard work, there is no down turn in mission. Our providers and support staff members are still rising early, working hard and coming back beat but with smiles on their faces.

Sep 08, 2007 12:13

And just like that we we`re done with Haiti. I can hardly believe we’ve completed our mission in nine countries. The amount of work this incredible team has accomplished is staggering, and we have three countries left in our planned deployment.

In Haiti, we had light crowds the first day of services, but we had lots of patients for the rest of the week and finished strong. These patients were a variety – men, women, young, old, oh, and furry! Yes, our veterinary site was also in full swing!

We hosted some very distinguished visitors during our stay here – Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Stephen Johnson, U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Janet A. Sanderson, Canadian Ambassador to Haiti Claude Boucher, Haiti’s prime minister, minister of health, and president of the senate, as well as Southern Command’s commander, Adm. James Stavridis.

The weather allowed us to use our boats for most of the movements between ship and shore this week. We were also able to bring aboard a few local vendors for the last two days in port. The work of these artisans was simply amazing. The degree of craftsmanship, especially the intricate designs of the tin work, was incredibly impressive. We wrapped up operations this afternoon and flew the equipment back to the ship just before sunset. All in all it was a good day and a good week.

We’re leaving Haiti with a sense of accomplishment and an anticipation of hard work in our last three mission stop countries of Trinidad, Guyana and Suriname – right after four days of rest in Curacao. I’ll leave you with these thoughts until out return to work in Trinidad.

Sep 06, 2007 15:07

Our time in Port-au-Prince is going by very quickly. It seems we just started the mission, and it’s almost time to wrap up. The days go by fast thanks to the high pace of work we have in each country, and Haiti has been no exception.

We have been relying mostly on boat operations for our movement of patients and crew. The weather has been relatively nice, although the ship’s flight deck registered a 113 degree heat index yesterday around 12:45 p.m. We’re back to our norm of mustering everyone going ashore at 0500 and getting everyone back aboard by 1830. This makes for long days, especially with the heat.

Coming into this mission stop, we wondered about how well communication with the local population would run since most of our patients here speak French or Creole and few of the ship’s crew do. This was our first stop in a country where the locals speak something other than English or Spanish. But the Haitian government was able to find around 65 translators for us, which greatly helps our efforts.

The government of Haiti has also been very good in providing security for our personnel as they move via armed convoy between the boat landing zone and our three work sites. But even our people who visited here in April during the Pre-Deployment Site Survey say there is a big change in the city in the five months since then. For example, some areas such as where our Seabees are working are no longer overrun by crime and gang members, and the city now has some street lights. Everyone is pleased to see this progress.

All in all, things are going well. We wrap up our operations here tomorrow, and I’d be understating the situation by saying that the crew is looking forward to our liberty port in Curacao. But we’re still continuing to work hard until we get there.

Sep 03, 2007 10:50

Happy Labor Day! I know many people are off today back in the States marking the end of summer with backyard barbeques and beach trips. While I know at least some of the Comfort crew may feel a little homesick right now, we are at least keeping up with the football games, thanks to the American Forces Network. Oh, and we definitely still have the heat of summer here in Haiti!

We pulled into the harbor near Port-au-Prince Sept. 1 around 2 p.m. The ship was still slowly making way into the harbor when we started lifting supplies to shore to begin our logistics movement. I, Capt. Boynton, the Medical Treatment Facility commanding officer, and Robert Leitch, Comfort’s medical director for Project HOPE, all went ashore for a small welcoming ceremony hosted by U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Janet A. Sanderson at her residence.

I’ve only been ashore for a short time in so far. But from what I’ve seen, Haiti is a land of contrasts. From the terrain and weather to the people and neighborhoods, Part-au-Prince is home to a huge degree of diversity. It will be an interesting week as we serve this population, and we look forward to the challenges associated with our work here.

Aug 31, 2007 11:07

We are currently steaming away from the Panama Canal after departing Colombian waters late on Aug. 28.

As expected, the weather and being anchored out so far from Buenaventura during our visit in Colombia made it difficult for us to execute our mission. The biggest constant during our time in Colombia was change. We were more flexible in this country than in any other country, and I’m pleased with the outcome. We sometimes had trouble moving people by helo and boat. We gave the mission our all despite what the weather threw at us, and we’re sailing away still feeling we’ve made a small difference there. I’d call that a win.

Some of the highlights of the Colombia mission include visits by Colombia’s Minister and Vice Minister of Defense, Chief of Defense, Navy Commander, and Secretary General of the National Institute of Health, as well as the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Colombia Brian Nichols and Canadian Chargé d’Affaires William Farrell. In addition we saw many whales jumping out of the water near where we were anchored. People riding in the boats saw some of the up close. It was like being at Seaworld. This was pretty neat for a lot of people.

We conducted our first VERTREP – or vertical replenishment – when USNS Saturn met us of the coast of Colombia at our anchorage and we used the helos to shuttle between the two ships food, supplies and most importantly, mail!

The Seabees completed their own version of an “extreme” project, building a small health clinic at La Sierpa in five days. It took 14 people – which included a corpsman and two U.S. Public Health Service volunteers, 416 manhours to complete the task. They lost a half day to the weather, and they worked an extra day to catch back up. These folks were not working in optimum conditions, either. They slogged through rain, wind and mud every day, hauling lumber, tools, supplies and equipment more than 100 feet uphill to build this clinic in time. They also got very extreme boat rides to and from their worksite, courtesy of the weather. My command center got a message from the boat landing zone (BLZ) detachment the last afternoon saying the BLZ had a group of Seabees in real need of a hot shower. We got them aboard as soon as we could.

When the weather did clear for a while on the 27th, there was a beautiful sunset with USNS Saturn in the foreground on our port (left) side and a spectacular, huge moonrise at the same time off our starboard side. This was followed by a lunar eclipse, which we ended up not seeing due to cloud cover the next morning. And yes, more bad weather.

As we worked in Colombia, we were remembering our friends in Peru. I am enclosing an email I received from one of the professors of the medical student I quoted in log entry #17:

I have just read the email sent to you and is now in Commodore Kapcio´s web log. As a faculty member I am deeply moved. … Moved because we had the opportunity to meet such fine persons like those at the Comfort crew. …

My student accompanied me and 11 other 6th, 5th and 4th med students to Ica. They did not hesitate when I asked them on Friday 17 to go to Ica. Not a single second. No. They asked me in reply when should we leave. Two we worked with in Salaverry volunteered.

We arrived in Ica on Monday with 4 tons of food, medicine and clothes they had managed to get for our fellow Peruvians in need. We stayed there until Thursday, in those 3 days. I cannot describe what we saw there, particularly, in Pisco, all the pain and suffering and fear in these persons.

We saw 700 men, women and children providing to them medical attention, procedures and medicines. Approximately 2,000 activities total. We went door to door, because they did not dare to leave their houses in fear of getting robbed the few things they had left after the earthquake.

Thanks Comfort Crew, we thank you very much for being such an example of life and service. My students have something inside them that makes me very proud of them. Your spirit. Your spirit is within my med students. I feel justified.

Wow, so do I.

Aug 26, 2007 09:14

I wrote back in July about this deployment having lots of firsts. Well Colombia has certainly started out that way. We arrived off the Pacific side of the Colombian coast Aug. 22, and for the first time we weren’t able to anchor as close to shore as we had hoped. With the currents and weather taken into consideration we when arrived, the CO of the ship felt a much safer anchorage point would be further out from land.

The travel distance between our planned anchorage point to shore and where we actually anchored at is a difference of roughly seven miles. And the word “rough” is pretty accurate, too. I’ll get to explaining that in a minute.

As usual, we started the logistics of moving equipment, supplies and people to shore to get our sites set up and ready for treatment the morning of the 23rd. I and Captain Boynton (Medical Treatment Facility CO) also participated in an opening ceremony at our main treatment site at Buenaventura Coliseum. The weather was hot – it certainly feels like we’re back to summertime weather. The sun was shining all afternoon and we had no real indication of the weather being anything other than a good chance of rain every day.

We completed our first full mission day, but this time our people endured long waits for transportation back to the ship as we worked out the usual logistics hiccups coupled with two Joint Task Force Bravo Blackhawk helicopters that flew in from Honduras to help us move people. Everyone was tired and got back later than usual, but they were greeted with a hot meal and a warm shower. Pretty much all normal operations.

Our second mission day started out relatively uneventful until we got the morning weather report – a massive amount of rain and wind was forecasted to hit our exact area of operations in Bahia de Malaga, La Serpie and Buenaventura starting in the afternoon and staying with us for the entire weekend. I quickly assembled my planning cell to start discussing options: suspend all operations and get everyone back to the ship while we could, leave them there and see how the day went, or a plan something somewhere in between. We also discussed the possibilities of staying here a little longer to ensure we provided the full amount of care we had planned.

Rather than totally suspend all operations, I decided to scramble as much supplies and overnight items as possible to send out to a team of around 50 people to stay overnight and continue to provide medical care at our main site of Buenaventura through the impending storm. We also cancelled the scheduled trip for the media to visit the ship.

The seas started to get rough pretty soon thereafter, as we rushed to get as many people as possible back home to the ship. For those being transported by boat, it was a very rough ride, from what I was told. Several people got sick and everyone was completely soaked from the ride, which for La Sierpe had taken about 35 minutes to get to in the morning, but it took an hour and a half to get everyone back. As we progressed with our revised plan, the weather was iffy. We did not get the deluge of rain at our anchorage, but we were told that the weather kept changing from sun to rain at the sites.

Our team and the load of supplies were transported via numerous helo runs until everyone and everything got to where it was supposed to be for the night. Based on the weather prediction, we canceled our DV visit for today and rescheduled it for the 27th, which may end up working out better anyway since it looks like several of the invitees unable to attend today will be available to attend on Monday.

I think these were all good calls because, as predicted, today’s weather has been changing back and forth as we get boats and helos launched in between the hardest rain showers. Yes, despite the weather forecast, we are executing today’s mission as planned. The plan is flexible, as we must continue to be.

Every day of this mission presents new challenges, and we’ll continue to work as a team – U.S. Navy, Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, Canadian Forces, civilian mariners, Project Hope and Operation Smile volunteers – to provide the best possible care to the people of Colombia and to those where our journey takes us. As we have said often on this deployment, Semper Gumby – Always flexible!

Aug 18, 2007 22:30

Our transit to Ecuador was relatively quiet. We spent time staging equipment and supplies for use in Manta, where we pulled into port Aug. 15. We found out about the earthquake in Peru through the news. The next day we started getting ready to execute our mission in Ecuador, while also conducting some early planning for a possible mission back to Peru. We spent the day planning just in case we were sent, but so far we haven’t been tasked to go.

Although already up and working in Manta, we received the following email from one of the medical students we’d worked with in Trujillo, Peru. The note read, in part:

“I have to give the thanks to the whole USA, the President George Bush, the Congress of the USA and for the whole team of the USNS Comfort for coming to my country where many people need help, overall in the health field, I`m not going to forget the moment when some mothers were crying in a happy way when you went out the last day from the elementary school in order to come back to the ship, I saw the smile in the face of children after receiving medical attention and surgeries by free. …”

Although the English is a bit broken, the writer’s message is clear. It’s these sorts of thanks that give a deeper meaning to all the long hours and hard work.

In Ecuador we are continuing to help people so they can help themselves, this time through an accessibility program in coordination with USAid. At Angelica Flores School, for example, our embarked Seabees are busy building wheelchair ramps. This is a special needs school where some students are in wheelchairs. The ramps will allow these students to move throughout the school, no longer having to rely on others to get them around.

On Aug. 17th we hosted U.S. Embassy Ecuador Charge d’Affairs Jefferson Brown, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs Dr. Ward Casscells, Joint Staff Surgeon Rear Admiral David Smith and distinguished visitors from Ecuador. It’s always nice to share with people in leadership positions – regardless of the visitor’s nationality – the great work being accomplished by this team from different countries, including Ecuador. Many people probably don’t realize the Comfort team isn’t working in a vacuum. There is so much support and collaboration with the host nation, and there is no way we could be helping as many people as we are without the active and enthusiastic participation of our wonderful hosts.

Each country is such a learning experience in so many ways. For example, I’ve learned since getting to Ecuador that the tuna industry is huge here, and much of our U.S. canned tuna actually comes from Manta, where we’re currently located.

I also learned those famous “Panama hats” are made just outside of Manta in the town of Montecristi. I’m told that these hats are favorite souvenirs among tourists. Even though they’re made here, they’re apparently called Panama hats because the workers who built the Panama Canal wore them. You can buy these hats for a few dollars or for hundreds of dollars, depending on how tight the weave of the hat is (the tighter the weave, the more expensive they are). Lots of crew members will be coming home with a new hat!

Deployed ships sometimes get nice deals. One such nice deal is being provided by GATR Technologies is the Ground Antenna Transmit Receive (GATR) satellite antenna. This prototype unit is currently being tested on Comfort and is helping us keep lines of communication open between the ship and our medical sites. Six feet in diameter, the inflatable sphere looks more like a very large, gray beach ball than an antenna, and when taken apart it can fit into two cases small enough to be checked as luggage at an airport. Its capabilities include broadband internet, email, VTC and chat. More importantly for Sailors, on Aug. 19-20 we plan to allow Sailors to make voice calls to their families. The company is allowing the Navy to test the system at no cost, which will be quite a morale booster for the crew!

Aug 12, 2007 23:00

I last wrote about the weather and the difficulties we’ve had getting people off the ship and onto shore to work. Well on the 9th we were finally able to launch three boats to move 85 people to shore, thanks to the outstanding efforts and skills of our civilian mariners. Our helo crews continued their hectic flight schedule, moving the remaining amount of the 200 or so people who went ashore. The rest of the week was pretty much the same. We launched boats as weather permitted and moved everyone else by helo. I know I’m starting to sound repetitive but each day I am more and more impressed by the dedication and “can do” spirit of this joint team.

Operation Smile was aboard with us for a few days performing life-changing miracles in the operating room. It’s simply amazing to see the difference before and after surgery in the faces of these babies and kids with cleft lips and palates. And it’s also pretty moving to see the look on their parents’ faces as they leave the ship – they know the futures of their children are completely different than when they arrived aboard.

This week we hosted distinguished visitors from the State Department, Under Secretary Karen Hughes, Office of the Secretary of Defense, US Southern Command as well as the Peruvian government – ministers of defense, health and interior, as well as the regional president.

We went to a couple of the treatment sites where Comfort’s medical team is working. The lines were incredible, but the people were even more incredible. The Comfort team members going ashore in Peru kept coming back with stories of how many kisses they keep getting from grateful patients. What better measure of success could they have than this expression of thanks?

I showed up at a treatment site late yesterday afternoon where one of our Public Health Service personnel had 30-40 young boys getting ready to have a basketball shooting contest. She introduced me to all the boys as the Jefe, el Comandante (the big boss, the Commander) and I gave her one of my personal commemorative deployment coins for the prize. Then I called for the ball. You know things are going your way when you stink at basketball and you swish a 27 foot jump shot! Pure luck! Our PHS nurse ran into the boys and their teacher today and they kept talking about the shot the el Comandante made.

We are wrapping up services in Peru today and headed next to Ecuador tomorrow. With the end of this mission stop comes a change in the Project Hope and US Public Health Service members. Our arrival in Ecuador on Aug. 15 will also mark the half-way point of this deployment – 6 down, 6 to go! Has it been two months already? In some ways it seems like we just started.

Aug 09, 2007 23:21

We arrived in Peru Aug. 6 after a bit of a “rocking” trip south to Peru. As usual, we began moving people and equipment ashore nearly as soon as we weighed anchor to get things ready for the start of services the next day.

The mission began with challenges from the start. The weather has stayed about the same since we crossed the line – so gray and overcast that the clouds and our white ship blend together except for the big red crosses. It is winter in South America and it is much colder than the other countries we have visited. Today was the first day we’ve seen any bit of sun since we arrived.

We’ve also had lots of wind and lots of waves. With such a big ship it doesn’t seem like some wave and wind would move us very much, but that’s not the case. The weather and constant beat of the Pacific have been creating problems with our boat operations as a result of these dangerous conditions. So instead of using boats all day, we run them in the morning when it’s safest and move everyone via helicopters otherwise. Our helicopter detachment and flight deck crew have done a magnificent job the last few days of both moving people and keeping the aircraft ready to fly.

Our mission days are also a bit shorter with sunrise around 6:15 a.m. and sunset around 6:25 p.m. Our helicopter use is limited to daylight hours by regulation, but we’re pushing as hard as possible in the hours we’re using them. That new helicopter of ours is getting some pretty intensive use!

Our very distinguished guest yesterday was Under Secretary of State for Diplomacy and Public Affairs Karen Hughes, who spent the day with us touring our treatment sites and visiting the ship, as well.

I’ve been told the Peruvian people love ceremonies, and I’m convinced of that after watching the opening ceremony Aug. 7th at Sanchez Carrion School in Trujillo for Comfort’s arrival in Peru. What a wonderful spectacle of balloons popping, children cheering, dancers performing, and bands playing. One of the things that most impressed me was the handmade signs with messages like, “Welcome Buque (ship) Comfort,” “Welcome friends,” and “Thanks for the medical care.” I also loved seeing the crowd waving all sorts of handmade U.S. flags among the Peruvian flags.

Our hosts were very gracious and also quite patriotic. At one point, the Peruvian band played Peru’s national anthem. It’s a pretty long song compared to our own “Star Spangled Banner.” The whole courtyard echoed with the voices of the Peruvians singing every word of their national anthem in unison.

I felt lucky to be there representing the people on the third floor of that very school who were at that same moment providing care to the long line of people who came to see them.

Aug 05, 2007 12:58

We briefed the crew last night on the overall plan for our mission in Peru. Before we started, I reviewed the themes and goals for Comfort’s deployment this summer: to show the people of Latin America and the Caribbean the compassion, support and commitment we, the United States, have for them. I thought it was important to review these themes as we move closer to the mid-deployment point because sometimes it’s easy to lose sight of them in the day-to-day push to get things done.
This underway period has been a good time for us to try and finalize plans for the remainder of our deployment. We feel good about what we’ve accomplished so far and we want to make sure we’re using the lessons learned from the first five countries we’ve been to.
August 4th was significant for our deployment because we crossed the equator at around 0900. It sounds mundane, but it was quite the festivity as hundreds of crew members – service members and civilians -- were accepted by King Neptune into his court. For many, such as our Air Force brethren, who wouldn`t normally ever get to experience this Navy tradition, it was quite an eye-opening and fun experience. After the fun we had planned to celebrate with a “Steel Beach Picnic” on the flight deck, but with our crossing came winter. We had a high temperature of 72 degrees at 0800 with overcast, rainy skies all day. So we moved the picnic onto the mess decks instead.

We also took a few minutes after the mission brief to celebrate the U.S. Coast Guard’s 217th birthday. Capt. French, our senior Coast Gurad member, stood with eight of his Coast Guard shipmates and shared with us Coast Guard Commandant ADM Thad Allen’s birthday message, which highlighted the service’s accomplishment of saving more than a million lives since 1790. Then in true joint spirit of this mission, we all shared some really great chocolate birthday cake and thanked our Coast Guard service members for their service.

Aug 01, 2007 11:36

Well, it’s certainly been interesting since my last log. We began our mission in El Salvador when we pulled into port during the evening hours of July 25th. Before mooring at the pier, we had started flying a small number of people and equipment into the town to prepare the medical and construction sites for our mission which started the following day.

Our people were finishing set-up duties when a young man came into their makeshift clinic with a deep stab wound that had most likely punctured the victim’s chest and abdominal cavities. Our team worked to stabilize the victim, who had lost a lot of blood. Although our team included a doctor and an emergency room nurse, the clinic they had just set up was not equipped to provide trauma care. Once the victim was stable, the family transported him to a facility for follow-up care. Our team felt that their presence at that place and time saved this young man’s life.

That’s just one of many examples of these “right place, right time” occurrences that have been happening so much. We also had a 14-year old boy with cerebral palsy who needed surgery to help him stand. This teenager has never stood or walked but the doctors hope this surgery will allow him to be able to stand up.

The most heartwarming stories to me are those where the lives of children are changed to the degree of transformation. Sight returned, the ability to walk, removal of a disfiguring growth. What a way to spend a summer, huh? I even spent two hours in the operating room watching a surgery one day. The TV show ER has nothing on our docs!

We also had to come up with a plan to acquire and deliver a new helicopter to replace one that broke. Our newest addition to the crew – Painkiller 43 – arrived July 30th delivered near new by a C-17, just in time for our departure. I’ve been doing this a long time and the speed in which a new helicopter was made available and transported from Norfolk to El Salvador was pretty amazing. Our U.S. military logisticians are the best!

As we prepare to leave El Salvador tomorrow, we are looking forward to a longer underway period that will allow us to catch our breath just a bit. We will be conducting training and getting details in place for Peru.

We are also gearing up to partake of the time-honored Navy tradition of sweeping the deck clean of slimy wogs through their miraculous transformation during a ceremony to mark our Crossing of the Line – the Equator. I’d write more about what this ceremony entails but of course that takes all the fun out of it. Let’s just say the flight deck will need a very deep cleaning once the wogs become Shellbacks. It’s all in good … clean fun.

Jul 26, 2007 22:00

I was worried, looking over my previous postings, that they were getting repetitive; worried that I might not be capturing the impact this deployment is having on me, everyone involved, and most especially on the people we are helping.

I know I can’t fully describe the sense of satisfaction when we see the throngs of people patiently waiting in line to be seen by one of the health care professionals we have here, or the sound of a crying child as it is being helped in ways that might not otherwise be possible, or the sight of a mother’s tears when her child is cared for so lovingly.

You simply must be here to truly appreciate the impact of this mission.

Since you won’t be joining us directly, please do take advantage of the many ways we are trying to help tell this story. You are obviously reading this from the U.S. Southern Command Web site. There are also stories posted here and at www.navy.mil that describe our day-to-day events; go there and search the word COMFORT. For those who want to see some of the photos we are taking, you can also get to a photo gallery from this site, specifically at http://www.navy.mil/view_gallery.asp?category_id=91.

I hope you were able to see the Fox News live feeds from the ship. We gave the producer an opportunity and he told the story. Most of the press that have visited the ship and the medical sites are amazed at the lines of people (controlled chaos) and the things they see. Several have asked me, “ Is it like this everywhere you go?” The answer is always yes and most of the people are very grateful for anything we can do for them.

While I worry about repetition, this deployment is truly about three specific elements, each of which seems to come up every time I sit down to write:

Planning – early, detailed, thorough, and have a back-up.

Hard work and dedication – so many people doing so much to help others.
Hope – the men, women and children who travel great distances and patiently wait in line, hoping to see someone who can help make their lives better.

With these three constants, this team is doing amazing work … and that never gets repetitive.

Jul 23, 2007 00:37

What strikes me so strongly as we near the end of a visit is how quickly they fly by, yet how long and how much effort it took -- from so many people -- to make this mission possible.

Tomorrow we will host 25 distinguished visitors. We’ll host Vice President Morales, the Secretary General of the Ministry of Defense Ruth Tapia Roa, our U.S. Ambassador to Nicaragua Paul Trivelli, the Nicaraguan Ambassador to the United States Arturo Cruz, Dr. John Howe from Project Hope, and so many others that not only helped make this mission possible, but will help spread the word about what we are doing.

It was a blink of an eye ago and we arrived off the coast of Nicaragua. We are anchored out here, which means the ship is about three miles away from the port at Corinto. This is a challenge because we have to send everyone who staffs and supports out clinics ashore on a boat or helicopter. This is a daunting task when you need to move 200 people ashore in a couple of hours, so they have time to see patients.

I flew ashore the first day and participated in a press conference with my leadership team including the ship’s master and the commanding officer of the Comfort’s medical treatment facility. Joining us were representatives from Operation Smile and Project Hope, who were able to talk about their organizations` support for this mission and their ongoing efforts in Nicaragua.

While it happened quickly, I’ll not soon forget the bear-hug I got from the Mayor Méndez Zeledón of Corinto. His embrace sent a message of thanks and appreciation that spoke volumes to me. He and several of his staff, as well as the director of Hospital Centro de Salud, Jose Schendal and some of his staff, joined us aboard the Comfort today for a tour. It’s such an honor for me to host such special people aboard this ship and to show them how hard our men and women from across the U.S. and Canada work to provide so much help for so many people in need.

And yes, we’ll have our other big DV day tomorrow and we aim to impress them just as much. Through these visitors we will be able to tell the story of the people we helped here to a much wider audience.

While there have been many great stories here in Corinto, there is one is particular that has warmed the hearts of the staff: Our surgeons removed an extra toe from a five-year-old Nicaraguan boy, July 21. He was born with the extra toe, which prevented him from wearing shoes or attending school. His mother said she heard about Comfort’s humanitarian mission three days before service members and civilians from Comfort started seeing patients at Jose Schendal Health Center in Corinto, Nicaragua, and had a friend put her son’s name on the list to be seen. She said they traveled for two hours by bus from the town of Somotillo along the Nicaraguan border to reach the hospital where the boy was evaluated by medical staff and flown by helicopter to Comfort for surgery. The mother was very impressed when she came aboard Comfort. “I like the ship, but what I like most about it is the people,” she said. “They are loving and caring. It’s good to know that there are people that care about other countries and are willing to help.” I think that pretty much defines what we are trying to accomplish on our deployment.

Jul 19, 2007 00:39

After a month of hard work and treating some of the most appreciative people I’ve ever been around, the Comfort team finally took a break, spending 4 days in Panama City, Panama, July 11-15.

Our crewmembers went on fishing trips, tours, trips through the jungle and enjoyed many of the different activities and restaurants Panama City has to offer.

It was a great opportunity for our team to relax, reenergize and to begin preparing for the next leg of our mission which will encompass Nicaragua, Peru, Colombia, El Salvador, Ecuador and a second transit through the Panama Canal.

While in Panama City, we regretfully said goodbye to Team 1 from the Public Health Service team as well as several Project Hope volunteers as their scheduled rotations ended. Their dedication and hard work is greatly appreciated and will be missed even more.

On the flip side of that coin, we were able to welcome a new Public Health Service team (Team 2) along with new Project Hope volunteers, new Canadian Forces and other crew members as well. Also joining us in Nicaragua as a new member of our team is another non-governmental organization (NGO) called Operation Smile. They specialize in cleft lip repairs.

Early this morning, we weighed anchor off Puerto Corinto, Nicaragua. We have busy days ahead of us here, as we do in every port, but each and every single one of us look forward to reaching out and helping our neighbors and friends who seek our help.

Jul 11, 2007 09:04

I was interviewed by a reporter this week who asked me about my Navy service in relation to this deployment. I told him I though after 20 years in the Navy riding all sorts of ships as a Surface Warfare Officer that I’d seen and done it all. But with every single day of this deployment I find myself experiencing a new first. For example, I participated in a promotion ceremony for five officers in the Public Health Service. We think it was the first PHS ceremony ever to be conducted at sea.

The band performed several times in Panama, to rave reviews. Here is part of the email of thanks I received from the American Embassy.
“Senior Chief David Wiley, Petty Officer Michael Wells, and the whole band are fantastic goodwill ambassadors for the Comfort, the Navy, and the United States. They have been great to work with.
“We had upwards of 500 people at one point during their performance at Multicentro Mall here in Panama City. It was the best musical program I have seen in my time in Panama, and certainly one of the best received by an enthusiastic and appreciative audience. From their performance at the 4th of July, to their playing for 60 some children at the Colon Fine Arts School, to bringing down house, or the mall rather, they have been simply superb and represent the best of the United States musically.”
The people of Panama are as helpful as their canal and as warm as their country’s climate! Working here has still had its challenges, but with our hosts and partners here we’ve been able to reach even more citizens in this country than before. So far we’ve had nearly 55,000 total patient encounters for the deployment, of which more than 29,000 were in Colon alone.

In addition to all this, we also were honored with visits by U.S. Ambassador to Panama William Eaton, Panama President Martín Torrijos and First Lady Mrs. Vivian de Torrijos, First Vice President and Foreign Minister Samuel Lewis, Representative Silvestre Reyes who is a Congressman, Texas, ADM James Stavridis, Commander, Southern Command, and Minister of Health Camilo Alleyne.

It was a very full and eventful mission stop, and we are satisfied with what we were able to accomplish.

Today we left Colon and transited the Panama Canal. There were many people onboard who have never been through the canal. Many families were following our transit via the Panama Canal Webcam. We reached the final lock just before 4 p.m. And what a trip through the canal it was. At the first two locks, we had numerous Panamanians wave to us and call out their thanks. One man added, “God bless you!” as we cleared the second lock. It made me proud of this crew and the work we’ve done so far. We’ll be in Panama City for the next four days. Look for my next log entry once we’re back underway on the 15th.

Jul 08, 2007 12:31

Just in the first two days of service in Panama, we’ve seen more than 8,000 people at our work sites here in Colon. Each time I visit a site, the lines seem longer but the smiles seem wider.

People brave the heat, rain and whatever else Mother Nature throws their way to receive care from our tirelessly dedicated staff.

If you think we’re busy on the medical side of things, you should see what the SEABEEs have been up to. They’ve been painting and repairing walls, building sidewalks, replacing inefficient electrical wiring and battling the heat to build an awning for a high school suffers every time in rains because it didn’t have a shield from wet weather.

The Panamanian people have been so supportive and appreciative, it really makes us all feel proud every day to see the difference our men and women are making in Latin America and Caribbean.

As we get ready to wrap up our work in Colon and transit the Panama Canal on our way to the Pacific, the crew of the Comfort will miss the friends we’ve helped here. Hopefully you can find time to watch us move through the Canal in a few days on the Web at http://www.pancanal.com/eng/photo/camera-java.html.

The email excerpt below, was written by the principal of Belize Rural High School and is yet another reminder of how our efforts are received by those who reach out for help. It was sent to Ensign Leonard Neal, the officer in charge of Combat Battalion Maintenance Unit 202, which is our embarked SEABEE unit. There’s nothing that makes me smile more than knowing that we’ve been able to reach out and touch our friends and neighbors.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Officer Neal,

… As a young institution, we do not have the words to express our appreciation for the assistance you and your crew bestowed to us. We are certain that the electrical work done at my office has already shown a difference in that entire building. Secondly, the sidewalk constructed from the second building to the outside toilets will definite assist us in the hurricane season. Thirdly, our roof on the second building definitely needed the repair that was carried by your crew. This would definitely assist us during the rainy season. In closing, you assistance to the overall development of school`s infrastructure has certainly been to our advantage. We again want to thank you and your crew for your assistance and may the Lord bless you all with health and safety today and always. Muchas gracias!!!

Jul 05, 2007 12:39

It’s amazing how many people turned out to get medical and dental services in Guatemala. Even on a steamy Saturday in more than 90-degree heat, people lined up outside the sites to wait for care. Some with stools, some with umbrellas, and most standing, they waited in the hot sun. Inside the clinic at Morales, ropes set up like lines for amusement park ride guided patients through the clinic. The providers worked quickly yet thoughtfully to give each patient the best possible care. In our five work days in Guatemala at for sites, we cared for 20,000 patients. Go here to read the full story: http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=30391

It’s also amazing to hear some of the stories of the people who come for care. For example, there was a Mayan woman named Elvira Cab who walked almost five miles, traveled nearly six hours by truck and spent four nights in a hotel on a trip to the National Hospital in Puerto Barrios so she could undergo surgery June 28 to have a painful hernia she’d had for 12 years surgically removed. You can read the full story here: http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=30358

Yesterday we held a promotion ceremony for 5 officers from the US Public Health Service (PHS). We think it was the first PHS promotion ceremony ever conducted at sea. Unfortunately we had to cancel our flight deck BBQ due to high winds and seas.

As I write this on our American Independence Day, I am reminded of how lucky Americans are and how difficult it can be for many people around the world to get medical care of any type. Today we on COMFORT especially count our blessings that we are Americans, and are playing a role in making a difference in helping to better others’ lives.

Jul 02, 2007 17:19

We began the first day of full operations in Guatemala June 27 with a visit by the U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala, the Secretary of the Navy, the commander of the Guatemalan Navy, and the Vice Chief of Staff of Guatemala’s National Defense. A few days later we hosted the Guatemala Vice President and his family. We were honored to show these highly distinguished guests what the USNS Comfort has brought to Puerto Barrios, Guatemala - from equipment, to its capabilities but most importantly…. the people.

Having one mission stop under our belts gave us increased experience to understand what it takes to pull off a mission like this. Guatemala has been a huge success. The lines at the hospitals and other sites have been out into the streets everyday. We saw thousands of patients and conducted education for many others. The days have been very hot and long (we get up at 0430 (4:30 AM) and return to the ship at 1930 (7: 30 PM)) but everyone comes back onboard every night saying they can’t wait to go out again the next day. We really have a remarkable team.

Talk about changing lives: A Guatemalan woman and her son-in-law walked almost five miles, traveled nearly six hours by truck and spent four nights in a hotel on a trip to the National Hospital in Puerto Barrios so she could undergo surgery June 28 aboard the Comfort. She credits her nearly 290-mile journey from her home in Coban Alta Vera to a newspaper article several months ago announcing that a hospital ship from the United States was coming to Guatemala to provide medical services and surgeries. Her son-in-law stated, “We couldn’t believe that it happened – it was incredible,”

I think the best way to sum up our visit to Guatemala is with some quotes:

Vice President Eduardo Stein Barillas of Guatemala: “I’d like to express our deepest gratitude to the United States for all the wonderful work that’s being done here,” said the vice president. “The enthusiasm of the staff was perhaps what impressed me the most. The outreach of the staff that went into the Guatemalan cities, and the other Central American countries, is something that will last forever in the minds of those people who were treated.”

At the Puerto Barrios National Hospital, the Director Jaime Sanchez: “This is the first time this area has experienced anything of this magnitude with the American people and their health care system. It has been a truly wonderful experience. The partnership has left a lasting memory - not only in our personal lives, but also in our health care services, providing education for the health care providers and for the population as well. We’ve experienced (not only) the American culture, but we have also been exposed to different cultures within our own community. It’s been a fantastic experience.”

The last thing I’d like to leave you with is a handwritten letter given to one of our sailors while he was working at the hospital:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
U.S. Comfort July 1, 2007

GOD BLESS YOU for coming to Guatemala and helping our people without anything in return. May God return and reward you greatly for your great effort. Our country doesn’t have very good medical care; these two public hospitals that you saw are the only ones in this area. People around the villages have to come from 5 hours away to come to these hospitals. My son Shawn died on Sept. 12, 2005 because they told me that they had to take him to Guatemala City for better care and he died on the way. That was very sad for me and it was all because of the poor medical care that we have. Dr. may want to do more but they are very limited with the machinery that they have and the people don’t have enough money to pay for medicine sometimes. It’s really sad. God bless you for helping us and taking the time to come here. May GOD reward you and be with you at all times.

Sincerely yours,

Helen

Jun 26, 2007 01:03

We’ve wrapped up operations in Belize and have arrived in Guatemala after a short seven-hour transit.

It was a challenging week for everyone with the long days, a heat index above 100 degrees and for some, four hours in a bus every day as they went to and from a work site. We had to be flexible due to unforeseen events like wind causing a heavy sea state that required us to cancel small boat operations for an afternoon. But because we were flexible, we were able to add on a mission on our last day to conduct a medical and dental mission at an orphanage with approximately 70 children ranging in age from 2-16 years old. That mission allowed us to reach dozens of children who may not have been seen otherwise.

Despite any setbacks such as weather, we reached a good number of people through our medical and dental outreach, as well as community relations projects. For the Belize mission, we conducted operations at seven different sites.

While I was busy every day, two surgeries caught my eye. One was a small boy with a club foot. The other was a boy with cataracts that couldn’t see. The boy with the club foot will grow up and have a normal life instead of a crippling disability. They other boy was given the gift of sight! Remarkable!

Our embarked Seabee unit conducted building improvement projects such as painting buildings, installing plumbing, and building a sidewalk, as well as installing an air conditioning unit in a school’s computer room and performing electrical work such as installing covers on uncovered light switch boxes to improve safety for the students at the school. We were able to repair 80 pieces of medical equipment. And we also were able to deliver more than $41,000 of medical equipment and medicines donated from Project Handclasp donors in Green Bay, Wis., Project Hope and International Aid. Oh, and the stuff animals donated by Hugs Across America and Military Sealift Command were a huge hit with our younger patients.

The people of Belize were gracious and generous hosts. I and the entire Comfort crew feel deeply honored to have had the opportunity to meet them and be guests in their beautiful country.

Jun 22, 2007 00:52

Thanks to the outstanding skill and work of Comfort’s civilian mariner crew, we pulled into harbor near Belize Wednesday, June 20^th, dropping anchor at around 8:30 a.m. The water was a beautiful shade of blue, and the breeze was blowing just enough to cool things down a degree or two.

Our logistical operations to move equipment to shore began immediately. The focus of the day was getting equipment to the right places so we were ready to go as the sun rose this morning.

The next morning was hectic as we executed the first major movement plan for our first day of care. People were offered breakfast at 4:30 a.m., and we mustered everyone going ashore at 5 a.m. for the first boat launch that left the ship 30 minutes later. We moved around 180 people ashore by 0900 on this morning.

The first day is always the hardest as people figure out where to go and what to do. It was a long and hard day, too, with these same 180 people arriving back on Comfort at around 8 p.m. with smiles on their faces.

Jun 19, 2007 00:57

We’re working long days to get ready for our first mission stop in Belize. It’s taking an incredible amount of planning to safely move supplies and people from ship to shore, to work site and back. Some of these work sites are in very remote areas and can only be accessed by helo due to the distance and our restrictions to be on shore solely during daylight hours.

We’ve also handled another media event on June 17, when we hosted Brig. Gen. Paul Van Sickle and his wife. The general and 11 media from seven Miami outlets flew to Comfort and spent the morning with us off the coast of Miami. We then took everyone on a tour of the ship to show them some of her capabilities, such as the biggest afloat galley, CASREC (Casualty Receiving) with its red decks, the CT Scan and the OR (operating room). It’s gratifying to get such a positive response from visitors.

The U.S. Navy Showband eased us into the evening with a flightdeck concert. I wonder what the crew members of the ships we passed were thinking as we rocked out to a killer concert.

We also had a cake cutting in honor of the Medical Corps’ 109th birthday on the flightdeck. HM1 Greg Rivadeneya, Master Chief Day and HM3 Alexis Chavez cut the first piece of birthday cake. Not a bad first 36 hours at sea.

June 16, 2007:

Finally. After months of intense planning and coordination, we’re underway.

Everyone is excited everything has gotten off to a great start, beginning with our Media Day on the 13th.

Captain Nanartowich, our civilian ship’s master; Captain Boyton, who runs our Medical Treatment Facility; representatives from Operation Smile, Project Hope and the Pan-American Health Organization; as well as myself were able to tell the first chapter of our deployment to Latin America and the Caribbean to help those in need while providing some intensive humanitarian assistance and disaster relief training.

We were able to bring the media onboard for an extensive tour and they were able to see our hardworking Sailors, Airmen, Coast Guard, Military Sealift Command civilian mariners and Canadian Forces personnel diligently preparing to get underway. The media seemed very impressed with the Comfort’s capabilities and at how unique our mission is. It’s not every day you get the mix of military, government civilians and non-government organizations that we have onboard for this deployment. We had some personnel reporting onboard the night before we left so we need and are coming together quickly.

I think that while the next four months will be very busy for everyone, they will also be some of the most rewarding. We’ve got all sorts of goodies to deliver along with our medical skills and capabilities. We’ve got everything from teddy bears from Hugs Across America, to games, toys, footballs, books and paper and pencils.

I have been conducting briefs in small groups every day since we left to tell everyone aboard what we are about to do for the next four months and drive home the point that we need and are going to make a difference. I’ve received great feedback, and everyone is really pumped up to get started.

I wish I could put into words how proud and honored I feel to be a part of such a special mission. The next four months are going to be unforgettable.

- Captain Kapcio