Iddins takes command of 59th Medical Wing

by Staff Sgt. Chelsea Browning
59th Medical Wing Public Affairs

4/11/2014 - JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas -- Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Bart Iddins took charge of the 59th Medical Wing during a change of command ceremony April 10 at the Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center.

Iddins replaces a retiring Maj. Gen. Byron Hepburn, who led the 59th MDW through its integration with Army medical services as part of the new San Antonio Military Health System.

Gen. Robin Rand, commander of the Air Education and Training Command, presided over the event, which took place near the medical facility's main entrance.

"It's always a pleasure to be among these 6,000 professionals who are such a tremendous asset to our Air Force and to our nation," Rand said. "Few Airmen have served with more distinction than those from the 59th Medical Wing."

As commander, Iddins is responsible for the Air Force's largest medical wing, composed of seven groups with a staff of more than 6,000 military, civilian, and contract employees. Iddins will also serve as Deputy Market Manager of the San Antonio Military Health System, an integrated U.S. Air Force and Army medical team dedicated to serving the nearly 240,000 beneficiaries at the nine medical treatment facilities in the San Antonio metropolitan area.

"To the 240,000 beneficiaries served by this military health system - your mission is our mission, your hardship is our hardship," Iddins said. "We will always be there for you. Not simply to meet your expectations, but to exceed them."

Iddins is no stranger to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland; he was assigned to what was then Wilford Hall Medical Center for a transitional internship from June 1991 to July 1992. He returned in July 1997 as a dermatology resident, then again in September 2006 as the 59 MDW's vice commander.

A chief flight surgeon with more than 1,250 flight hours, Iddins comes to San Antonio following an assignment as the Command Surgeon, Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott Air Force Base, Ill. As AMC's senior medical officer, he was responsible for establishing, coordinating and sustaining a health care system for 429,000 beneficiaries; and for organizing, training and equipping AMC medical forces for contingency operations.