Month: October 2023

Source: United States Navy

In coordination with the Kanagawa Prefecture and Oi Town Government Offices, the annual event showcased the capabilities of Allied partners in the occurrence of a simulated natural disaster. Over 15 military, civil, prefectural, and local organizations participated. The event served as a stage for Allied forces, civilian governments, and commercial industries to reinforce their collective commitment to public safety, effective communication, and successful operations in the case of natural disaster. USNMRTC Yokosuka sent doctors, nurses, corpsman and a moulage team to heighten realism and to prepare simulated causalities. All Allied partners worked together to triage, treat, and process exercise participants within the disaster scenario.

“The Medical Service Unit of Yokosuka and JSDF Hospital Yokosuka sent doctors and Corpsmen to join the exercise. They worked together with U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Japanese civilian medical teams to provide care within this simulated disaster scenario. During this type of event, it is imperative to construct and maintain face-to-face relationships to facilitate the essential care needed. In this exercise, the partnership between the U.S. military and JSDF was demonstrated and strengthened. JSDF would like to continue to reinforce our joint-partnership and prepare for the challenges ahead together,” Rear Adm. Tsukazaki, Director of JSDF Hospital Yokosuka, Japan

“It was exciting to see the medical teams from the Army, Navy, and Air Force working in combined teams alongside our Japan Self Defense Force and civilian host nation medical partners to provide healthcare to the many simulated casualties at Big Rescue Kanagawa. This disaster drill significantly improved our interoperability with all participants and helped our Army medical team practice the skills that we will need for any future contingency operation.” Colonel Jeremy D. Johnson, Commanding Officer MEDDAC-Japan

“We are extremely pleased to be asked to one of Japan’s at largest rescue demonstrations this year,” said USNMRTC Yokosuka Commanding Officer CAPT T. Blair Hines. “From coordination to execution, this event serves to strengthen our interoperability and reinforce vital partnerships with our Allies in the local community and increase our joint readiness.”

USNMRTC Yokosuka provides healthcare services and ensures medical readiness to the INDO-PACIFIC area of responsibility covering nearly 9 million square kilometers (8,920,530.52 km²). Our organization serves over 337,000 operational forces, including the U.S. Seventh Fleet, III Marine Expeditionary Force, U.S. Forces Japan, Marine Corps Installations Pacific, U.S. Forces Korea in the Republic of Korea, and Military Sealift Command in Diego Garcia in the British Indian Ocean Territory. USNMRTC Yokosuka provides a vast array of healthcare to our service-members, families, and Allied Forces from primary and specialty medical care to dental services. USNMRTC Yokosuka leads the AOR with breakthrough performances in healthcare delivery Key Performance Indicators and consistently implements innovative programs to deliver specialty healthcare services efficiently across vast distances.

Source: United States Navy

Good afternoon, everyone! It is wonderful to be with you here at Naval Medical Center San Diego.  Every time I visit this hospital, I am in awe of the incredible view you have of the Coronado Bridge, as well the warships of our nation’s Pacific Fleet.

Sometimes I feel like every Sailor, Marine, and civilian in our Department requests to be stationed here in San Diego, and I know why…

Thank you, Captain Adriano, for your warm welcome, and for sharing with us your insights into the role that Naval Medical Center San Diego plays in our Navy.

To our Third Fleet Commander, Vice Admiral Boyle, Commander Naval Medical Forces Pacific, Rear Admiral Valdes, and all of our flag and general officers, thank you for joining us this afternoon.

Finally, I would like to recognize the representatives here today from the military and private healthcare organizations that support our Marines and Sailors stationed in southern California.

You and your organizations have dedicated yourselves to meeting the healthcare needs of our Navy and Marine Corps and I cannot thank you enough for the role you play in ensuring our personnel and their families are ready and resilient.   

Today, we stand here at a military hospital nestled in San Diego’s 1,200 acre backyard — Balboa Park.

It is this unique location that resulted in the affectionate nickname for Naval Medical Center San Diego — Balboa. 

And we are proud of the connection that this nickname provides between our Navy medical personnel and the local community they are a major part of.

The story of Naval Medical Center San Diego starts in 1917 as a small dispensary, providing limited medical services to military personnel.

By the end of World War I in 1918, that small dispensary grew to a hospital with over 800 beds.

Just two years after the Navy first opened the dispensary, the 41^st Secretary of the Navy — Josephus Daniels — re-designated the dispensary to Naval Hospital San Diego.

And with that name change, the hospital continued to grow.

Throughout World War II, more than 150,000 patients were treated at the hospital, including burn patients from the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Between 1964 and 1975, the hospital earned the distinction as the largest military medical facility in the world.

In 1968, the hospital hired its first five civilian social workers to help with readjustment treatment for prisoners of wars—the first civilian social workers to serve in the United States Navy.

And in 2007, the hospital established the Comprehensive Combat and Complex Casualty Care (C5) Program, managing severely wounded, ill, or injured patients, supporting either their eventual return to active duty or transition from the military. 

More recently, in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, Naval Medical Center San Diego became one of the first COVID-19 vaccine sites in the world, marking a historic turning point during the pandemic.

Today, this hospital’s personnel continue to conduct ground-breaking medical research, discover new and innovative approaches to the delivery of world-class medical care, and provides a medical residency program for over a dozen medical specialties to develop our next generation of military doctors.

The contributions of this medical center over the past 100 years, represented by the care its personnel delivers to our Sailors, Marines, and families, are absolutely incredible.

The guiding principle of Navy Medicine is to align its people and platforms in order to enhance warfighter health, wellness, and performance. 

I can say, with full confidence, that Naval Medical Center San Diego achieves this on a daily basis.

And today, I am pleased to announce that, in honor of the dedicated doctors, nurses, corpsman, medical practitioners, and staff of Naval Medical Center San Diego, we will be welcoming a USNS Balboa into our fleet.

USNS Balboa (EMS 2), once commissioned, will be our nation’s newest Bethesda-class Expeditionary Medical Ship (EMS).

Expeditionary Medical Ships are high-speed ships that are optimized to provide hospital-level care in support of distributed maritime operations.

Their design features a shallow draft enabling direct access to shallow, austere ports, providing them with greater reach than USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort.

With this new class of ship, we are setting forth the Naval tradition of naming EMS ships in honor of our distinguished naval hospitals, as well as the men and women who staff them.

I am also pleased to announce that our ship sponsor for USNS Balboa will be Mrs. Deborah Paxton.

As a nurse and the wife of General John Paxton, the 33^rd Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, Mrs. Paxton dedicated her career to ensuring the well-being of our Sailors, Marines, and their families.

Most notably, she spent 13 years as a civil servant, serving as the Mental Health Advisor to the Marine Corps’ Wounded Warrior Regiment.

Her tenacity and nursing background made her the perfect advisor, leader, and friend that the Wounded Warrior Regiment and its recovering Marines and Sailors needed.

According to naval tradition, a ship sponsor’s spirit and presence guides the ship and her crew throughout her time in service, serving as the bond that connects the ship to its namesake.

I have no doubt that Mrs. Paxton will be that bond between the ship, her crew, and the community of medical professionals here at Naval Medical Center San Diego.

And while Mrs. Paxton cannot be with us today, I am pleased that we have her friend and former colleague, Command Advisor to the Wounded Warrior Regiment, Mr. Paul Williamson, here to speak on her behalf and share how much this honor means to her.

To the doctors, nurses, corpsman and staff — both uniformed and civilian — here at Balboa, I cannot thank you enough for your continued efforts to enable our Sailors, Marines, and their families to perform at their best, ensuring the health readiness and community of our Fleet and of our Force.

May God continue to grant our nation and our people fair winds and following seas. Thank you.

Source: United States Navy

The future USNS Balboa honors the legacy and commitment of Navy doctors, nurses, corpsmen, and staff of Balboa Naval Hospital in caring for the needs of U.S. Service Members.

“The contributions of this medical center over the past 100 years, represented by the care its personnel delivers to our Sailors, Marines, and families, are absolutely incredible. This hospital’s personnel continue to conduct ground-breaking medical research, discover new and innovative approaches to the delivery of world-class medical care, and provides a medical residency program for over a dozen medical specialties to develop our next generation of military doctors,” said Secretary Del Toro. “The guiding principle of Navy Medicine is to align its people and platforms in order to enhance warfighter health, wellness, and performance. I can say, with full confidence, that Naval Medical Center San Diego achieves this on a daily basis.”

The name selection follows the tradition of naming expeditionary medical ships after U.S. military hospitals.  

As the informal name for Naval Medical Center San Diego, “Balboa” began as a naval hospital tent erected in December 1914 in support of the Panama-California Exposition (1915–1917) held in San Diego’s Balboa Park. When the United States entered World War I, the Navy converted the deserted exposition grounds into a training center containing a war dispensary and a camp hospital. In September 1919, San Diego officials set aside 17.35 acres of the park at Inspiration Point for the construction of a permanent naval hospital, often referred to as the “Pink Palace,” for its stucco façade. Commissioned in 1922, the complex added a hospital corpsman school in 1928 and continued to grow throughout World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, adding a surgical building, medical library, and outpatient clinic over time.  By the early 1970s, the Balboa complex was among the largest military hospitals in the world. A new hospital compound to replace aging structures was completed in 1988 on land adjacent to Inspiration Point with the former site reverting to the City. Today, Balboa leads the way as one of the largest naval medical teaching and research facilities in the nation, in addition to supporting five medical mobilization teams and USNS Mercy (T-AH 19).

In addition, Secretary Del Toro announced that Mrs. Deborah Paxton, MSN, RN, agreed to be the ship’s sponsor. Mrs. Paxton, wife of retired Marine Corps General John Paxton, the 33rd Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, has spent her life in support of the Marine Corps and a decade of work serving the Marine Corps’ Wounded Warrior Regiment as the mental health advisor to the regiment. 

“I am beyond grateful that Secretary Del Toro chose me for this great honor, and I pledge my commitment to USNS Balboa and her crew,” said Deborah Paxton. “I feel such confidence and comfort knowing that EMS 2 will operate where Marines and Sailors are engaged in either combat or humanitarian relief providing access to world-class medical care in critical times.”

Bethesda-class expeditionary medical ships are designed as a dedicated medical ship that optimizes hospital-level medical care in support of distributed maritime operations (DMO). EMS will feature a shallow draft enabling greater reach and allowing direct access to shallow austere ports, while also providing a flight deck that accommodates military helicopters. This design provides a full range of medical capabilities including triage/critical care, three operating rooms, medical laboratory, radiological capability, blood bank, dental, mental health, OB/GYN and primary care, rapid stabilization and follow-on evacuation of multiple casualties and combat search and rescue including recovery at sea. The primary mission of the EMS as a high-speed forward-deployed medical ship is to provide rapid responsive sea-based and near-shore hospital level critical care, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, non-combatant evacuation operations and special operations. The EMS is designed to respond and provide care at a more rapid pace than their predecessors, USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort, sailing at speeds of at least 30 knots with a range of 5,500 nautical miles at 24 knots.

 

Read the full speech – HERE

Source: United States Navy

“I am thrilled and honored for this opportunity,” shared Navy Culinary Specialist 2nd (CS2) Class Jamesha Richardson, a galley Watch Captain at Naval Base Kitsap, Washington. “This has been the most fun, and we’re dedicated to putting out a great meal.”

Anglo-American relations, refers to the close and enduring ties between the United Kingdom and the United States. The two countries have a shared history, language, culture, and values, and they cooperate closely on a wide range of issues, including defense, security, intelligence, trade, and investment.

The relationship deepened during the 20th century, as the U.K. and U.S. worked together to defeat the Axis powers in World War II and to build the post-war international order.

Today, Anglo-American relations is one of the most important bilateral relationships in the world.

“You understand this is historical,” said CS2 Brittiny Boatman, galley Watch Captain at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, California. “There are not many Navy chefs that get to take part in something of this significance.”

The Anglo-American dinner has become an annual event held aboard Victory. The dinner is hosted by the Royal Navy (RN), and it is attended by senior officials from both countries.

The Anglo-American dinner is a unique opportunity for British and American leaders to come together and discuss important issues of mutual interest. It is also a chance for the two countries to celebrate their shared friendship and cooperation.

In addition to its political significance, the Anglo-American dinner is also a social event. It is an opportunity for British and American officials to get to know one another and to build personal relationships. This can be beneficial for both countries, as it can help to improve communication and cooperation on a range of issues.

Victory is the most famous ship in the history of the RN. She is best known as Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson’s flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, a decisive victory over the combined Franco-Spanish fleet that secured British naval supremacy for the next century.

She was launched in 1765 and has served in a variety of roles, including as a flagship, a hospital ship, and a troop transport.

Today, Victory is preserved as a museum ship at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard in England. She is a popular tourist attraction, drawing over 350,000 visitors per year.

“Being part of the Embassy is such a privilege, really a highlight of the catering experience,” said RN Catering Services Petty Officer Alan ‘AJ’ Hamilton, deputy House Manager, when speaking of the significance of serving at both Admiralty House and aboard Victory through the RN Embassy.

The Anglo-American dinner aboard Victory is a significant event in the history of Anglo-American relations. It is a symbol of the close friendship and cooperation between the two countries, and it is a reminder of the shared values and heritage that bind them together.

Source: United States Navy

The training on the next-generation BVRAAM system is in preparation for full operational capability (FOC).

The missile, which brings together six nations with a common need to defeat the threats of today as well as the future emerging ones, is designed to revolutionize air-to-air combat in the 21st century, according to the weapon system’s manufacturer, MBDA, a missiles and missile systems company.

The team was able to assess the ship’s suitability to prep and store the missile whilst also delivering handling training and capability briefs, explained Royal Air Force Sqn. Ldr. Simon Stafford, U.K. weapons lead, PAX ITF, who led the team. “Meteor operations on F-35 will provide the U.K. Carrier Strike Force with beyond-visual-range capability, enhancing the U.K.’s F-35B weapon arsenal,” Stafford said.

As part of the training, Meteor lead NCO Acting Sgt. Dan Housden briefed the ship’s head of air engineering, Royal Navy Cdr. Jamie Elliott, on the missile characteristics.

Additionally, weapons team members Chief Technician Darrel Crane and Petty Officer Nathaniel Bicker embarked to support this trial iteration. They assessed the ship’s suitability to prep, store, and deliver enhanced electronic countermeasures in preparation for HMS Prince of Wales’ participation in a carrier strike group deployment in 2025 (CSG 25).

The first phase of the Operational Testing and Evaluation (OT&E) campaign of the Beyond Visual Range Air to Air Missile (BVRAAM) Meteor took place in recent weeks at Hebrides Range in the United Kingdom, according to reporting by EDR Magazine, which pays special attention to European defense-related matters.

“Guided by an advanced active radar seeker, Meteor provides all weather capability to engage a wide variety of targets from agile fast jets to small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and cruise missiles. It is designed to meet the most stringent of requirements and is capable of operating in the most severe of clutter and countermeasure environments,” according to the description provided by the manufacturer on its web site.

“The weapon is also equipped with data link communication. Aimed at meeting the needs of a network centric environment, Meteor can be operated using third party data, enabling the Meteor user – the pilot – to have the most flexible weapon system,” continued the description.