Walter Reed Breaks New Ground With 3-D Vision System

By Kristin Ellis
Special to American Forces Press Service

April 3, 2007 – Virtual reality made its way into the operating room last week when an Army doctor performed the military's first three-dimensional minimally invasive surgery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here. Armed with a state-of-the-art helmet, Col. (Dr.) Ernest Lockrow, director of the Telerobotics and Minimally Invasive Surgery Center, used the 3-D capabilities to perform a hysterectomy.

Minimally invasive surgery, also known as laparoscopy, uses tiny incisions to operate and typically involves a telescopic lens that is connected to a video camera. The operation last week was the first time the military has used the 3-D vision system to help visualize and guide the surgeon during a laparoscopic procedure. According to Lockrow, the typical laparoscopy procedure is done with a two-dimensional display. The images from the telescopic lens appear on a monitor, and surgeons use this to guide their way through the operation.

Some of the problems with teaching new surgeons in two-dimension technology are that they can easily miss something while practicing operations until their eyes adjust to the two-dimension view. This lack of depth perception can hamper the surgeon during an operation, Lockrow explained. With the new three-dimensional headset capability, surgeons can precisely get to where they need to be.

"What the three-dimensional procedure now gives is a camera for each eye, so the surgeon can now see just as he was operating in a general, open procedure," Lockrow said. "When you're used to operating in two dimensions and then you go to three dimensions, it just makes it so much easier. We actually had a fellow who has not done a lot of laparoscopic surgery and was able to easily grasp the laparoscopic procedure in three dimensions."

Lockrow is taking the technology a step further by exploring a new realm of telecommunications with the use of this device. Although there are issues associated with transmitting images across a network in terms of signal delay, it could be possible someday to have a doctor use a 3-D helmet in Germany to assist a doctor here who also is wearing the helmet, and vice versa, Lockrow said.

"In military aspects, that's really where we want to go; it's just a long road to get there," he added. Walter Reed now has the facilities that give surgical teams the capability to broadcast the surgery, Lockrow noted.

"We're actually able to take the new technologies and techniques, and we can now televise them to a network or to a classroom," he said. "Now, more than two people can watch a procedure; a whole classroom can watch."

The 3-D laparoscopy device is part of a bigger project involving robotic surgery and minimally invasive surgery in which the Army is trying to incorporate new technologies and make them available at health-care facilities throughout the military. Lockrow's team tested the helmets at the robotic training center lab at Uniform Services University.

A Navy surgeon, Cmdr. (Dr.) Christine Sears, assisted Lockrow in the operating room. An Air Force surgeon, Maj. (Dr.) Chad Hamilton, watched the procedure.

Sears said she's impressed with the new technology. "The 3-D visualization improves the ergonomics of laparoscopy - the image is directly in front of the surgeon at all times," she said. "Rather than looking at a screen which is stationary, the helmet moves with the surgeon's head, improving visualization."

Hamilton said continuing to bring state-of-the-art procedures and methods to military medicine will ensure servicemembers get the best available care. “Incorporation of such technology will allow (the military) to continue offering cutting-edge procedures our beneficiaries have come to expect and keep us in the vanguard of technology and medicine," Hamilton said.

Lockgrow agreed. "I think it's important that we keep exploring these new technologies, because this is great for military medicine," he said.

(Kristin Ellis is a Stripe staff writer at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.)

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Bush: Delay in War Funds Will Hurt Military Readiness, Morale

By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service

April 3, 2007 – Further congressional delay in forwarding an appropriate emergency war spending bill to the White House will damage military readiness and morale as well as endanger the nation, President Bush told reporters today at a White House news conference. Congress's failure to fund our troops on the front lines will mean that some of our military families could wait longer for their loved ones to return from the front lines, and others could see their loved ones headed back to the war sooner than they need to," Bush said.

That scenario is "unacceptable," Bush said, noting he believes the American people would agree with him.

"Members of Congress say they support the troops. Now they need to show that support in deed, as well as in word," Bush said. Congressional debate over the conduct of the war against terrorism "shouldn't come at the expense of funding our troops," the president said.

The Senate and the House of Representatives have both passed emergency war supplemental funding bills providing funding for U.S. troops, but the money is contingent on troops being withdrawn from Iraq according to a set timetable. Each chamber's bill also contains unrelated domestic spending.

The president sent his recommended military spending bill to Congress almost 60 days ago. Bush has rejected the recent Senate and House legislation out of hand, saying he'd veto any military funding bill with set timetables for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

Bush said he'd just received an update on the U.S. troop reinforcement, or surge, to Iraq from Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Two of the five additional Army brigades involved in the surge are now operating in Baghdad, Bush noted, with another now making its way into Iraq from Kuwait.

"And the remaining two brigades will deploy in April and in May," the president said. It'll be early June, he said, before all five brigades and other U.S. reinforcements are in place in Iraq.

The U.S. Army brigades already in Baghdad are having a positive effect on reducing violence there, Bush said.

"And as more of those reinforcements arrive in the months ahead, their impact will continue to grow," the president said.

The current House and Senate war spending bills "undercut the troops by substituting the judgment of politicians in Washington for the judgment of our commanders in the ground, setting an arbitrary withdrawal from Iraq, and spending billions of dollars on 'pork barrel' projects completely unrelated to the war," Bush said.

If Congress fails to forward the White House a favorable war spending bill for presidential signature by mid-April, then, "the Army will be forced to consider cutting back on equipment, equipment repair, and quality of life initiatives for our Guard and Reserve forces," Bush said.

Bush said those cuts would become necessary, "because the money would have to be shifted to support the troops on the front lines." The Army also would have to consider cutting training for stateside-assigned Guard and Reserve units, he said.

That scenario would negatively affect unit readiness and might delay the affected units' availability for missions in Afghanistan and Iraq, Bush said.

Additionally, if Congress doesn't pass and forward a favorable war spending bill by mid-May, then potential problems would become more acute, the president said. The Army would be forced to consider slowing or freezing funding for its equipment-repair depots, Bush said, or delay training of some active-duty forces for overseas deployment.

"If this happens, some of the forces now deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq may need to be extended because other units are not ready to take their places," Bush explained. "The Army may also have to delay the formation of new brigade combat teams."

Bush then read from a letter to Congress written by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, who informed legislators of the impending funding crisis for his service: "'Without approval of the supplemental funds in April, we will be forced to take increasingly draconian measures which will impact Army readiness and impose hardships on our soldiers and their families.'"

A shortage of funds, Bush explained, would cause some stateside-based Army units to be unavailable for mobilization to Iraq and Afghanistan to replace units set for rotation back to their home bases.

The president acknowledged that some Americans are concerned about U.S. policy on Iraq, but he emphasized that failure to defeat terrorism there would doom the fledgling Iraqi democracy and endanger U.S. citizens.

American military forces serving in Iraq are providing its young government "breathing room" so that it can eventually defend and sustain itself against its enemies, Bush said.

If U.S. troops leave Iraq too early, it could become a "caldron of chaos, which would embolden" the Sunni, Shiite and other extremists who are now trying to tear the country apart, Bush said. Terrorists could then use Iraq as a safe haven, he pointed out, from which to launch new attacks against America.

Bush said his primary presidential task is to protect the American people.

"And, I firmly believe that if we were to leave (Iraq) before the job is done, the enemy would follow us here," the president said.

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AAFES Marks Four Years of Service, Support to Troops in Iraq

American Forces Press Service

April 3, 2007 – The Army and Air Force Exchange Service marks four years of service to deployed troops in Iraq this week. Ared with little more than backpacks and footlockers full of energy drinks, protein bars and baby wipes flown into Iraq aboard a C-130 flying 300 feet off the ground, Craig Sewell and Dennis Hatcher launched AAFES "combat retail" operations in Operation Iraqi Freedom on April 7, 2003.

On that day, AAFES' first mobile exchange in Iraq was actually an old Toyota Landcruiser that Sewell and Hatcher commandeered to follow troops patrolling what was previously an Iraqi airfield south of Baghdad.

"The environment was very austere," said Sewell, AAFES vice president assigned to the Strategic Partnership Directorate. "While there wasn't running water or power, and we had limited shelter," he said, "we understood that we were there to provide service regardless of the conditions.

"With the battle for Baghdad still in full swing, and enemies launching multiple attacks on the airfield during the evening sandstorms," he continued, "this was one of the most challenging missions I have supported in my nearly 30 years of service with the exchange."

Four years later, the footlockers, backpacks and even the Landcruiser have been scrapped in favor of a sophisticated supply chain that leverages air, ground and sea assets to deliver the exchange benefit to soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines throughout the Operation Iraqi Freedom theater.

This logistics pipeline ensures 26 base or post exchange facilities, 24 unit-run exchange operations, 63 name-brand fast food restaurants and hundreds of services, including barber, beauty and laundry, have the goods needed to deliver a slice of Americana to troops called to serve far from home.

"AAFES started with absolutely nothing in Iraq," said Lt. Col. Steven Dean, AAFES chief of contingency operations. "While name-brand fast food was just a distant hope on that April day in 2003, troops deploying today have convenient access not only to BX/PXs, but also dozens of recognizable restaurant brands including Burger King, Taco Bell and Popeye's Chicken and Biscuits."

Making sure the food is hot and exchange shelves are stocked is a force of more than 390 American civilians voluntarily deployed to operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom at any given time. These AAFES associates, many of whom have deployed multiple times, live and work alongside the troops they serve during 6- to 12-month deployments.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, 1,890 AAFES associates have voluntarily left the comforts of their homes and families to extend the exchange benefit to troops craving a well-deserved taste of home.

While long-term, international operations continue in the Middle East, AAFES also is prepared to support natural disaster and contingencies closer to home with a fleet of state-of-the-art mobile retail facilities that come complete with satellite communications, coolers and built-in shelving.

Called tactical field exchanges, or TFEs, these units are often the first resources to be deployed to domestic emergencies. Staged at various locations throughout the United States, including AAFES's sprawling distribution center in Waco, Texas, the TFEs have been redesigned using lessons learned not only in Iraq, but also in operations throughout North America, including support of firefighters in Washington state last summer as well as relief operations in the wake of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina in 2005.

Armed with the information that can only be learned in these extreme conditions, AAFES's Waco Facilities Management Office was on the forefront of designing the new TFEs, from the ground up, to better service the field needs of both troops and emergency responders.

"They have everything necessary to be a 'turn-key' operation," Dean said. "These new TFEs give AAFES's commanding general a 48-hour response capability for any contingency occurring in the United States. AAFES has deployed these TFEs to many locations already, with terrific results for our deployed military."

After nearly 112 years in military resale, it is hard to imagine there would be much more the Defense Department's oldest and largest exchange service could learn about retail, but since Sewell and Hatcher ventured out onto Iraq's back roads in 2003, the AAFES team has learned more about its people, services and support than those who created the exchange service in 1895 could have ever imagined.

"Our military and civilian personnel have demonstrated time and again that they are ready, willing and able to go where the troops go for as long as America's armed forces are called to serve in harm's way," Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Bryan Eaton, AAFES senior enlisted advisor, said. "These past four years in Iraq are not only important because of the support we have delivered to those 'on the ground,' but also troops we will serve in the future, because today AAFES is better prepared than ever before to fulfill its motto, 'We Go Where You Go.'"

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Franchise Helps Group Support Injured Troops

American Forces Press Service

April 3, 2007 – Members of Daniel Acosta's family already had a lot on their minds when he arrived at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio from serving in Iraq with injuries that ultimately cost him an arm. And shortly thereafter, his wife, Sandy, delivered their third child.

To ease part of their burden, Maid Brigade is lending a hand with weekly household cleaning as part of a national partnership with Operation Homefront to serve military families in need.

Operation Homefront is a member of America Supports You, a Defense Department program that highlights the ways Americans are supporting the nation's servicemembers.

"This is the best baby gift ever!" Sandy said. "Maid Brigade and Operation Homefront have relieved so much stress from our lives, and the weekly cleaning allows me to spend precious minutes with my children and help my husband recuperate."

After America Supports You officials introduced Operation Homefront and Maid Brigade, the organizations announced in January their partnership to support military families in crisis by offering free cleaning service.

With a mission to provide emergency assistance to troops, military families and wounded warriors, Operation Homefront anticipates many scenarios like this, where Maid Brigade will make a genuine difference to military families.

Working with Operation Homefront is a way of saying "thank you" to the nation's troops and families who have sacrificed so much, Josie Rangel, the San Antonio Maid Brigade franchisee who is assisting the Acostas, said. "It's nice that Operation Homefront gives regular businesses an opportunity to show their support."

"The work these two America Supports You groups are doing is truly outstanding," Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for public affairs and architect of the America Supports You program, said. "Something as simple as cleaning a house or an apartment can make a huge difference in the lives of our wounded veterans and their families.

"Operation Homefront and Maid Brigade are a perfect match, and we're so happy we were able to connect them," she added.

In Arlington, Texas, Maid Brigade and Operation Homefront are helping another family as it relocates to San Antonio.

Marvin Williams was an Army National Guard soldier activated to an Austin-based unit when he was injured in a training accident. Operation Homefront is relocating his wife and 11-month-old daughter.

"Our daughter was born one month after I was activated, and she won't even come to me," Williams said. "Because I am being treated for injuries here at (Brooke Army Medical Center), I could not help my wife with the burdens of packing our entire household to prepare for the move.

"Operation Homefront and Maid Brigade helped my wife in ways I could not," he added. "I can't say thank you enough!"

Keith Clem, of the Fort Worth franchise of Maid Brigade, has agreed to clean the apartment once the household items have been moved out.

"Maid Brigade is bringing genuine peace of mind to families who have sacrificed so much," Meredith Leyva, founder of Operation Homefront, said.

"Our many offices throughout the country have eagerly volunteered to help our wounded warriors in many different ways, and we are proud of the way our people have stepped up to assist our ... wounded military who have sacrificed so much," Don Hay, chairman of Maid Brigade, said.

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Even before that

Editor's Note: One of the writers is prior military.

April 3, 2007 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com is a website dedicated to listing state and local police officers who have authored books. On April 1st, we published information about the oldest known police writer – Thomas Byrnes. Turns out, we had the right department, but there was a police officer who published a book before Thomas Byrnes’ 1886 work.

In 1845 George Matsell was appointed first Chief of the New York Police Department. In 1859, or thereabouts, he published The Secret Language of Criminals: Vocabulum or The Rouge’s Lexicon. Essentially a dictionary of street slang from the mid-19th Century, it has interesting terms from the era, as well as some insights to our ‘street language’ today. As an example, George Matsell likely printed the first reference to “Dukes” as meaning hands, as in “Put up your Dukes.” In another example, he records that before the Civil War the word “crib” meant someone’s residence, as it does today.

In addition to George Matsell, two other New York City police officers were added to the website.

Jerry Ferguson served in the United States Army from 1961 to 1964. He joined the New York Transit Police Department in 1965, retiring in 1990 after 25 years of service. In 1991, he entered the Federal service, again retiring in 2005. A writer of poetry and short-stories, he is the author of nine books, including Jerry’s Own-Seeds of Wisdom; which according to the book description is “a collection of personal thoughts, expressed usually in one line on the important subject of Wisdom. Each one is numbered and there are 366 of them. Simple ideas which if reflected upon are important criteria’s to living a good life.” His other books, which are available exclusively through the author are: The Sponsor, Spirituality Plus, Subway Blues, The Pusher Case, The Murders of the Century Case, The Case of The Anonymous Souls, The Case of the Missing Prima Ballerina; and, The Case of the New York City Slicer!

James Reardon, a former New York Police Department police officer who published two novels – Big Time Tommy Sloane and Sweet Life of

Police-Writers.com now hosts 442 police officers (representing 191 police departments) and their 932 books in six categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.