US airmen provide citizens with medical treatment
Airmen from the 165th Medical Group, Georgia Air National Guard, US, treated over 3,200 citizens during a recent Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) mission in East Central Georgia.
Airmen from the 165th Medical Group, Georgia Air National Guard, US, treated over 3,200 citizens during a recent Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) mission in East Central Georgia.
Over 130 military medical providers from the Army, Reservists and National Guardsmen took part in the exercise, which saw troops perform 4,171 optometry procedures, 5,783 dental procedures, 8,752 medical procedures, 479 nutrition procedures and deliver approximately 1300 pairs of glasses to the local community. The troops provided the services to residents in Crawfordville, Thomson, Millen, Warrenton and Washington Georgia on July 11 to 18.
“It’s been amazing,” said Lt. Col. Jennifer Carver, Optometrist from the 165th Medical Group, Georgia Air National Guard, reflecting on the East Central Georgia Innovative Readiness Training mission. “As a resident of Savannah, I’ve had the extreme pleasure of helping my fellow residents this past week. The teamwork and comradery has made this mission successful.”
The programme is designed for servicemembers to practise the skills they would need when dealing with mass casualty situations, as well as build stronger relationships with the local community.
“It’s helped the community by providing a service to the community,” said Maj. Michael McDonald, IRT Programme Manager. “We are getting the training to help us when we deploy, and it helps us stay ready in our career fields in whatever spectrum that we work.”