The USNS Comfort will pull back into its home port of Baltimore soon after finishing up Continuing Promise 2009, a four-month humanitarian trip to seven Latin American countries.

During the mission, the Comfort’s physicians, dentists, nurses, optometrists and staff served more than 100,000 patients. Its surgeons conducted more than 1,600 operations aboard the floating surgical ward. More than 135,000 prescriptions were filled.

Beyond direct medical aid, doctors and nurses set up 1,300 training sessions for more than 37,500 host-nation students. Veterinarians cared for more than 13,000 animals. Engineers took on 13 projects, helping to rebuild schools and the like. The ship even carried aboard a military band that performed in venues such as the ship’s waiting rooms and at local orphanages.

The Comfort’s mission was supported by nearly 20 civilian humanitarian groups offering up hundreds of volunteers. Doctors and nurses from 10 nations, nearly 100 medical providers, also joined its efforts. Teenagers and grandmothers worked side by side with military members from around the world to provide care.   Information about many volunteer opportunities, both stateside and abroad, is available through Military OneSource.

On the Comfort, the result of this teamwork was a precision military operation delivered with somewhat of a summer camp atmosphere. Surgeons and nurses in scrubs sat next to college students in T-shirts alongside sailors, airmen, Marines and soldiers, all in their combat uniforms. Military commanders briefed every evening on the next day’s operations. This joint, interagency, international diversity was critical to the mission, Navy Capt. Tom Negus, the mission commander, said, and symbolizes the way ahead for U.S. efforts in the region.

Navy Cmdr. (Dr.) John Fortunato said that he, like many others on the trip, found the experience “eye-opening”.  I think it kind of puts it in perspective in a lot of ways,” he said. “We don’t know how lucky we have it.” The ship’s commanding officer said Fortunato’s experience is typical. While most are tired at the end of the mission, they are not discouraged, Ware said. In fact, they are proud of their work, hopeful that their efforts made a difference.

No one steps off the ship the same as they came on.

For more information about the USNS Comfort’s most recent mission, click here and here.  For video on the mission, click here.

Navy Cmdr. (Dr.) John Fortunato, a pediatric gastroenterologist, examines a Nicaraguan girl during a medical visit in Chinandega. Alongside Fortunato is U.S. Southern Command intern Rachel Libby, right, and medical student volunteer Michael Fein, center. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III 

Tags: humanitarian, medical, Operation Continuing Promise, USNS Comfort

This entry was posted on Monday, July 27th, 2009 at 2:21 pm and is filed under Active Duty, National Guard, Reserves. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.