Continuing Promise 2011 Arrives in Peru

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric Tretter, Continuing Promise 2011 Public Affairs

PAITA, Peru (NNS) -- Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) arrived in Paita, Peru, for her second stop of Continuing Promise 2011 (CP11) April 30.

Following Comfort's initial humanitarian assistance visit in Kingston, Jamaica, the ship's crew of military and non-governmental organization doctors and nurses now face more diverse conditions and a language barrier in a different country, continent and hemisphere.

"One of the things we need to be aware of is every country we go to, you want to look at life from the perspective of patients that we're seeing," said Capt. William Todd, director for surgical services. "We need to take the time out from the job that we're doing here to try and enjoy their life from their perspective; and it only takes a couple of minutes per patient to do that."

Comfort's deployment to the region exemplifies the U.S. commitment to cooperative partnerships in the Caribbean, Central and South America.

Comfort's hospital, the Medical Treatment Facility (MTF), is configured with specialized medical teams of military and civilian health care providers. These caregivers provide a range of services ashore, as well as on board the ship for approximately 250 patients.

Combined with the overall medical screenings comes regional and area-specific ailments that team Comfort can expect to encounter while in Peru.

"It's really the diseases of poverty that we see here; like everywhere else," said Capt. Gregory Martin, who spent three years stationed at a Navy lab in Lima, Peru. "There's a lot of chronic skin disease, mild malnutrition, infection diseases, respiratory ailments … it's also so hot and sunny here that a lot of people develop pterygium, an eye condition common among peoples living near the equator."

Helping to bridge the language barrier between CP11 staff and patients is a team of 12 U.S. Air Force and Navy linguists, who are serving as interpreters for the final eight countries of the mission.

Along with providing translators for the variety of medical and civil service teams, the linguists have translated medical documents and command information packets, and have welcomed Peruvian dignitaries, doctors and media.

"Translating a document takes time, it's not just five or ten minutes, it takes hours," said Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Manuel Guzman.

Aside from medical capabilities, U.S. Navy Seabees and Marines from Navy Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 26 will continue CP11's work during civic engineering projects where they will revamp and repair schools throughout the community.

COMUSNAVSO/C4F supports U.S. Southern Command joint and combined full-spectrum military operations by providing principally sea-based, forward presence to ensure freedom of maneuver in the maritime domain, to foster and sustain cooperative relationships with international partners and to fully exploit the sea as maneuver space in order to enhance regional security and promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the Caribbean, Central and South American regions.