Commander's Blog

It's hard to believe just how quickly the year has passed, and that another holiday season is almost here. While most people start thinking about turkey and football games, colorful trees and wrapped presents — and even that old four-letter word, snow — the main focus of the holidays should be centered on family and friends, especially those we may see only once a year. But this season may be a little different, in light of the uneasiness that has come out of the recent presidential election campaign. Now more than ever, we should use the holidays to show our appreciation of not only our family and friends, but also of our fellow citizens in neighborhoods, towns, and workplaces across the country. Diversity is one of the hallmarks that set America apart from other countries, and this is a very special trait. We must encourage others, especially during the holiday season, to recognize that there are many different traditions and faiths throughout our nation, and we should embrace the ways in which people express these customs.

During my military career, I have been fortunate to travel around the world, visit many countries, and meet a variety of people. This experience has shown me that regardless of the location or traditions, people are truly the same at the core. Despite the backdrop, fathers and mothers want the same for their families — to be financially secure to provide food, clothing, and shelter, and to see their children prosper and develop academically, so that someday they may succeed and perhaps end up with a life even better than the ones their parents had. We all want a better life for those who will come after us, and this is why we fight to protect our values, and our families. This common goal is what keeps us unified as we move forward into the holidays, and we should all take time this season to communicate to our family and friends their significance in our lives.

And when we speak of unity, keep in mind this goes hand-in-hand with readiness, which is a top priority of the Army Chief of Staff and our Army Surgeon General. Actually, maintaining a strong and ready military force is critical to our comfort during each and every holiday season. Knowing that we are being protected at all times by our men and women in uniform allows us to relax and enjoy time with our loved ones at the holidays. And we should certainly keep these same men and women in our thoughts and prayers as well, knowing that they are sacrificing time with their families to ensure we can spend time with ours.

On the subject of maintaining readiness, our USAMMDA team recently supported this effort by sponsoring a crucial equipment verification event at Fort Polk, Louisiana, to review the new Field Hospital design. This nearly two-week effort was organized and managed by Mr. Jaime Lee, and supported by USAMMDA personnel in our Medical Support Systems Program Management Office. During this event, we conducted an evaluation of new products, such as the configuration of the water and waste-water systems, and power systems for the new Force Design Update for the future Field Hospital. In addition to this, we demonstrated the new TEMPER Air-Supported shelters, and the new M400 digital power distribution system, as well as a new power design for the computed tomography scanner system. The information gained from this event is critical to advancing the readiness of our Warfighters in the field, but on top of this, the session was also very important in that it provided a training opportunity for many Soldiers who had not set-up or used a combat support hospital previously.

Also in attendance at this event were the Army Medical Department Test Board and the Health Readiness Center of Excellence Capability Development and Integration Directorate. The CDID is the organization that develops the requirements for the AMEDD, and one of the lessons observed is that operational testing should always be conducted when working with new equipment. Although the Fort Polk session was not an operational test, the work that our team accomplished reinforced the importance of this type of testing, which takes actual users and places new capabilities and equipment in their hands to obtain critical feedback going forward. This crucial information helps all of our Service Members to remain strong and ready in anticipation of mission requirements.

This was certainly a busy month for me, as I traveled from Fort Polk to Seoul, Korea, for another gathering of military leaders to discuss the readiness and sustainment of our troops overseas. In Seoul, we participated in the 38th Parallel Conference, and in conjunction with this, we met with theater medical leaders, the U.S. Forces-Korea Surgeon, the 8th U.S. Army Surgeon, the commander of the 65th Medical Brigade, the commander of the 121st Combat Support Hospital, and the commander of the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Center-Korea, which is a subordinate command of the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command.

During these meetings, we discussed ways to better support and assist the Korean Peninsula to maintain readiness at all times, in light of the fact that most Service Members stationed there are typically on one-year tours, which means that 70%–90% of units turn over each year. Needless to say, this makes for a very unique environment in which to maintain readiness, so this issue is not only a hot topic in that region, it is also a critical concern for which we must find a successful solution. As we move forward, we will be following up with some new initiatives to see if we can resolve this matter of readiness, to help ensure that we continually maintain our strength in that region.

Despite a bit of jet lag, and missing the comforts of home, both trips were very successful and positive, and I certainly learned a great deal about our new equipment, our teammates at other locations, and the status of our military at home and abroad. And with this knowledge, I can assure you that we certainly have much to be thankful for as we prepare for the upcoming holiday season!

As always, I am very grateful for our entire USAMMDA team and the work we do for our nation!

Happy Holidays!

COL William Geesey