By Jennifer M. Zingalie
AGANA HEIGHTS, GUAM (NNS) -- Lt. Gen. Patricia D. Horoho,
the 43rd Surgeon General and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Medical
Command, visited U.S. Naval Hospital (USNH) Guam Feb. 14th, during her trip
throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
The purpose of her trip is to support the Department of
Defense's goals to strengthen alliances and partnerships, and maintain an
assured presence in the region. Horoho also spent time understanding the health
system throughout the region in order to help improve on capabilities with
partner nations and military health care as a whole.
During her visit to the hospital, Horoho met with top
leadership to discuss the connection between joint efforts in military medicine
and force readiness. "Throughout military medicine there are things that
will need to remain unique to each branch, but there are also things being done
that can be standardized. There is an opportunity to eliminate some variances
and facilitate discussions that can better streamline our standards of
care," she said.
Lt Gen. Horoho talked with her Navy Medicine colleagues
about some of the ways the Army is working to improve the health and readiness
of the Army Family as a whole. Known as the "Ready and Resilient
Campaign", the Army is working to shift to a culture where Soldiers
optimize their own health in order to improve their performance and resiliency.
Congruently, both the Navy's Chief of Naval Operations and Surgeon General
envision a force that maintains optimal medical and dental standards, with Navy
Medicine's top three priorities being: readiness, value, and jointness.
Keeping forces ready in a joint environment is not a new
concept to most military medical professionals because it is something many of
them do in combat situations, as well as within garrison-based care systems in
the states that operate as integrated systems. Now, with the adoption of the
new governance model for the Military Health System, these successes are being
expanded into some of the military's major hospitals that serve as key
readiness platforms.
The significance to military medicine will be improved
integration and efficiency establishing common clinical and business processes,
to name a few. More importantly, skills required of medical professionals
during wartime will continue to be built at home through the ability to
practice and maintain technical proficiencies, through the care of Department
of Defense beneficiaries.
As the military rebalances some of its forces to the
Pacific, it will be very important to ensure its forces are fit and ready. USNH
Guam provides healthcare services to approximately 26,000 DoD, Veterans Affairs
and Federal civilian beneficiaries each year accounting for 139,000 outpatient
visits and 2,050 admissions.
Horoho also received a tour of USNH Guam's replacement
hospital, which is being built because the current hospital design is no longer
optimized for the mix of inpatient and outpatient services required by the
present and projected patient population. The replacement hospital will
incorporate advances in healthcare delivery, including improved patient life
safety and increased efficiency in hospital operations. The hospital will
continue to meet the full spectrum of patient and family centered medical and
surgical care for all eligible beneficiaries throughout its lifespan.
"The hospital is beautiful," said Horoho. "I
like that they implemented a healing environment. This will be an important
resource for those on island as well as the influx of Marines that will
eventually arrive on island."
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