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Foreword

Regional Response Forces ::

VALIANT SHIELD:
Building Trust and Security

GREEN LIGHTNING: Providing Security in the Asia-Pacific Region

Transnational Operations ::

KHAAN QUEST 2006:
Enhancing Multinational Peacekeeping

Humanitarian Support ::

USNS Mercy Bringing Hope to Asia-Pacific Nations

C-17 Aircraft Marking A New Airlift Era in the Pacific

New Zealand Defence Force Providing Security and Reconstruction in Afghanistan

From BALIKATAN to Mudslide Relief

Happenings  ::

Happenings

USNS Mercy Bringing Hope to Asia-Pacific Nations
Compiled by Asia-Pacific Defense FORUM Staff

Compiled by Asia-Pacific Defense FORUM staff from press releases by Laura M. Seal, assigned to Military Sealift Command Public Affairs; and by the following U.S. Navy authors assigned to U.S. Pacific Fleet Public Affairs: CPO Don Bray, PO2 Erika N. Jones, PO Ryan Clement, SA Mike Leporati, and SN Joseph Caballero.

Multinational medical teams aboard the U.S Naval hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) provided free medical care for the people of Bangladesh, East Timor, Indonesia, and the Philippines during a five-month deployment that began in May 2006. At the same time, U.S Navy Seabees, also aboard the ship, engaged in construction and engineering projects. Mercy’s mission was planned and coordinated with the governments of each country.

Mercy’s mission demonstrates the United States’ commitment to bringing hope to those in need and continues the U.S. Navy’s tradition of providing medical and humanitarian assistance. That commitment involves working with multinational partners, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the regional community to ensure peace and stability in the region. Mercy’s mission is a model of cooperation between the military and NGOs. By working together, improved medical care was delivered to medically underserved areas. NGOs were familiar with local areas and helped identify patients for care by the Mercy team.

“The U.S. Navy is not a stranger to providing relief and assistance after a disaster or during crisis and routinely we support the local community during our many port calls throughout the region,” Admiral Gary Roughead, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, told reporters 25 September 2006 at the Foreign Press Center in Washington, D.C. “But while similar partnerships among militaries, governments, and NGOs have been formed before in such instances, this time it was different because the partnership was premeditated and proactive and was not initiated by a natural disaster or famine, but simply by a desire to assist our neighbors.”

“It was unprecedented in terms of scope and duration of humanitarian assistance in a non-crisis situation. It was also unprecedented in terms of the partnership that was involved.” Mercy’s message was also evident during the devastating tsunami that struck Indonesia and other nations in the area in December 2004. Relationships with NGOs were developed during the tsunami relief efforts and were the foundation for cooperation between the U.S. Navy and NGOs. In that mission, Mercy’s medical team treated 107,000 patients, performed 466 surgeries, distributed 11,555 pairs of eyeglasses, and performed more than 6,900 dental procedures. (See URL http://forum.apan-info.net/ Asia-Pacific Defense FORUM Special Edition 2005 on U.S. military support to tsunami victims).

Mercy’s military and civilian medical teams included NGO volunteers from Aloha Medical Mission, Project HOPE, Operation Smile, the University of California at San Diego’s Pre-Dental Society, and a number of host nations’ NGOs. Military medical specialists from Australia, Canada, India, Malaysia, and Singapore were also on board Mercy. The success of this mission was a direct result of the strong partnerships formed among NGOs, civilian and military medical professionals, and military personnel who are all dedicated to improving lives and spreading goodwill.

There were multiple NGOs who were not embarked, but assisted the Medical Treatment Facility on the ground to include Tzu Chi, Save the Children, Philippine Red Cross, ACDI-VOCA (Agricultural Cooperative Development International and Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance), IOM (International Organization of Migration), Muslim Aid, and AusAID (Australian Agency for International Development).

U.S. Navy Capt. Bradley D. Martin led the USNS Mercy’s humanitarian mission. The commanding officer of the Medical Treatment Facility on board was U.S. Navy Capt. Joseph L. Moore. Civil Service mariner Capt. Robert T. Wiley was the ship’s master.

The ship’s doctors, dentists, veterinarians, nurses, and corpsmen offered medical, dental, veterinary services, and other humanitarian assistance to men, women, and children in villages normally lacking access to such treatment. Mercy can support various services such as casualty reception, optometry screenings, eyewear distribution, physical therapy, burn care, radiological and laboratory services, dermatology, urology, obstetrics and gynecology, general surgery, ophthalmologic surgery, plastic surgery, basic medical evaluation and treatment, preventative medicine treatment, dental screenings and treatment, immunizations, public health training and assessment, disease control, and veterinary services. Working in cooperation with host nations, Mercy medical staff provided these medical and dental assistance programs ashore and afloat. Mercy’s state-of-the-art operating rooms, CAT scan equipment, laboratories, and ability to electronically transfer medical information in order to consult with physicians in other locations were used by military doctors and NGOs.

At every location, Mercy medical teams treated thousands of people through medical and dental civil action projects (MEDCAPs). The teams also provided health care at local hospitals. The MEDCAPs, usually set up in remote villages, were used to treat minor illnesses and tooth decay ashore. Patients with serious problems were brought to the ship by helicopter or small boat for further medical treatment or for surgery in one of Mercy’s operating rooms.

Following treatment aboard the ship, patients were monitored in a recovery room and then moved to one of the intensive care units on board. Patients and their escorts would wait to depart the ship in one of Mercy’s wards until they fully recovered.

At each port where the medical teams disembarked to treat the sick, teams of public health workers followed close behind to test each area’s water sanitation and examine the level of insect-borne diseases. In addition, they held classes to help improve sanitation conditions as well as exchange ideas on topics such as basic life support and neonatal resuscitation. The U.S. Navy Showband deployed with Mercy, bringing music to each of the countries visited. They played songs to appeal to all ages. The band also held classes for local aspiring musicians.

Because the ship was too large to moor pier side at many locations, its two helicopters and two small utility boats shuttled medical personnel, cargo, and more than 6,000 patients to and from shore sites. Sixty-six civil service mariners from the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command, who were responsible for the ship’s navigation, engineering and general upkeep, ran the small boats, called “Band-Aids,” that ferried patients and medical personnel from ship to shore. They also worked alongside the U.S. Navy Seabees on many civic action projects ashore.

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