U.S. Army medical mission serves O.W. villagers
It may just be coincidence but in the last six months it seems that things have grown pretty chummy between the U.S. Military and Belize. They give us fast boats to fight illegal drugs, our sailors serve on their Coast Guard cutters, we host the general in charge of their Southern Command … and they give three of our soldiers a full ride to their most prestigious academies. And that’s not all … as News Five’s Alyssa Noble found out.
Alyssa Noble, Reporting
MEDRETEs or Medical Readiness Training Exercises have been conducted in Belize for several years now and over the past ten days, U.S. Army medical personnel from the District of Columbia Medical Command, have been offering free medical services to residents in the Orange Walk District.
On any given day, the MEDRETE team treated some five hundred people, mainly children and elderly residents from surrounding villages. According to Officer in Charge, Colonel Harry Marshall, it?s all about the basics.
Harry Marshall, Officer in Charge of Joint Medical Task Force to Belize
?The objective is to provide primary care, primary paediatric care, dental and optometry services to the citizens and veterinary care to the animals of Belize.?
?We?ve seen quite a bit of dental disease, the kids seem to like their sweets here, so we?ve had some education from the rural health nurse to teach the young Belizeans not to eat so many sweets. We?ve also seen a bit of high blood pressure and diabetes along with common diseases of ageing, arthritis, common fungal diseases of the skin and that kind of thing so we have come pretty well prepared with the medication list our medications which we have available and hopefully they will serve the citizens well.?
Aside from a wide array of medicine, the team is also well stocked with doctors, nurses and medical technicians.
Dr. Scott Bomberg, U.S. Army Dentist
?We?re doing an examination on a young ten year old patient here who just came in. She doesn?t have a tooth ache or anything so we are just going to go in and explain flossing and brushing with her and so we prevent the problems down the line. That?s what we are after.?
?We?ve seen some periodontal disease with kids also which is very unusual it?s just due to lack of proper care and hygiene. They don?t cleanings really on a regular basis here and we?ve seen that to be quite prevalent.?
Dr. Elfryn Reyes of the B.D.F., may not have travelled far, but what he?s seen over the last ten days has him concerned.
Dr. Elfryn Reyes, B.D.F. General Medical Practitioner
?We?ve seen a lot of skin diseases more than anything else. A lot of scabies and Impetigo, bacterial infection of the skin. We?ve seen some fungus, a lot of fungus. A lot of upper respiratory tract infections also.?
At the closing ceremony, held Wednesday in San Pablo village, B.D.F. Commander, Brigadier General, Lloyd Gillett explained that the cooperative relationship between the U.S. Army and B.D.F., involves more than just medicine.
Commander Lloyd Gillett, B.D.F. Brigadier General
?These are continual, every year we get about two and we move them around the country. It?s a win win situation. The members of the National Guard of the U.S. Armed Forces get an opportunity to satisfy their annual training requirements and the villagers in different parts of Belize get to get free medical attention, get to have their animals and pets looked after, so I think it?s a very good thing for both countries.?
?Security cooperation with the United States goes beyond just these medical readiness exercises we have foreign military financing which allows us to buy equipment; we have international military education and training which allows us to train the future leaders of the B.D.F. and also the technical people required for the future development of the B.D.F. So this is just one part of the total security cooperation package.?
And as far as U.S. Ambassador Robert Dieter is concerned, that package benefits both sender and receiver.
Robert Dieter, U.S. Ambassador to Belize
?Well the U.S. military forces and the Belize Defence Force enjoy a close collaborative partnership and work together on many efforts. The MEDRETE, the exercises we have had here in the Orange Walk district and then the three villages here are an example of the kind of cooperative effort that we have. The MEDRETE treated over five thousand Belizean citizens and also there was a veterinary team that came down which is something a little more unusual. That vet team treated some three thousand animals as well. So this was a very successful exercise.?
As for the patients, they are just grateful for the much needed treatment.
Young Patient
?I?m excited. Thanks to the nurse for giving me new glasses.?
Patient
?Yes, it?s good because you don?t have to go way up there (Orange Walk Town) and spend the whole day. That?s a good thing they are doing, yes.?
Patient
?Pues estoy alegre y contenta tambien porque ya hora puedo leer un poco y unos papeles porque ayer no puedo leer. (Translation: Well I am very happy and contented too, because I can now read a little, some papers, when yesterday I couldn?t read.)?
Patient
?I appreciate the work they are doing and that we are very glad, in the village to see that they are helping a lot of people.?
A follow-up MEDRETE visit is expected for the latter half of this year, and if this exercise was any indication of what to expect, Belizeans are sure to take full advantage of the services. Alyssa Noble reporting for News Five.
