|
TAFUNSAK, Kosrae – Sailors and
Airmen embarked aboard USS Peleliu (LHA 5) in support of Pacific
Partnership held a medical civil-assistance program (MEDCAP) at the
Tafunsak government building Aug. 21.
Pacific Partnership is a four-month humanitarian assistance mission to
Southeast Asia and Oceania that includes specialized medical care and
various construction and engineering projects.
The locals of Kosrae have welcomed the U.S. military with open arms
according to Jonathan Alkoa, a legislative member in the city of
Tafunsak.
“It is a great thing that the U.S. is doing here. There are a lot of
people here that have needed this help,” said Alkoa. “Hopefully this
will lead to future humanitarian missions to all of Micronesia.”
This is the second of four scheduled MEDCAP’s in Kosrae, and Officer
in Charge Capt. Yves Nepomuceno likes what he and his twenty person
team have in front of them.
“This is a great opportunity for us to help in a place that needs it,
and it’s the right thing to do,” said Nepomuceno.
During this MEDCAP, over 350 patients were seen for medical check-ups
and 185 glasses were distributed, but one little boy stood out for the
Pacific Partners in Tafunsak.
Just after being seen at the MEDCAP for a case of scabies, the boy
went out to play and fell leaving two lacerations on his head.
“He probably could have gone to the hospital, but we had everything we
needed here to treat his lacerations,” said Lt. Ryan Pomicter, flight
surgeon for Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron (HM) 14. “It
would have probably taken 30 minutes for him to get to the hospital
and his parents didn’t have to worry about paying for the procedure.”
The Pacific Partnership mission is scheduled to wrap up in
mid-September.
|
