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Medics face added challenge in Suriname

  • Published
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL, Minn. --  When reservists from the 934th Aeromedical Staging Squadron here deployed to Suriname earlier this summer, they expected to work with local military people to provide health care.

Twenty-three members of the squadron and 18 augmentees cared for more than 3,500 patients between July 26 and Aug. 10. As it turned out, they also found themselves having to treat Surinamese soldiers for shigellosis, a food and water-borne illness.

The role of the reservists was to work alongside the Surinamese military to provide dental, eye, veterinarian, pharmaceutical and general health care to the people of Suriname and their livestock.

Lisa Bobbie Schreiber Hughes, U.S. ambassador to Suriname, supports the Beyond the Horizons program in Suriname. She came out twice to watch the deployed team at work.

Suriname is a small nation in South America that lies just above the equator and shares a border with Brazil. It is a nation full of thick rain forests and exotic animals with one of the most diverse cultures in the Western Hemisphere.

"The people were friendly, generous and gracious, making it a true pleasure to team up with their military and provide the health care they often required," said Tech. Sgt. Ron Holbeck of the 934th ASTS.

An average day for the group in Suriname consisted of early morning bus rides over bumpy roads to a vacant school building. The reservists then converted the school into a field hospital. They unloaded supplies at each location and worked frantically every morning to turn classrooms into dental offices, pharmacies, doctor's offices and administrative offices.

Once a site was set up, the doors opened and the patients came in droves. In the midst of hot, tropical days, the reservists worked tirelessly to give care to as many patients as possible.

Working was particularly difficult for the dental team. The four-member team of Lt. Col. Dave Doroff, Maj. Kevin Huether, Master Sgt. Kathleen Gottschalk and Tech. Sgt. Jennifer Stodola saw 427 patients and extracted 871 teeth.

At the end of each workday, the reservists packed up the hospital supplies and returned to their home base.

While the reservists were providing health care to the people of Albina, Suriname, many of the Surinamese soldiers started complaining about stomach cramps. The severity of their cramps caused some of the soldiers to collapse in pain and develop high fevers.

Soon, in addition to caring for the civilian population of Suriname, the deployed Air Force reservists were treating their co-workers for an illness that could quickly have resulted in severe dehydration in the humid equatorial heat.

Nurses and medical technicians rapidly began putting together a treatment area where they started intravenous fluids in hopes of stabilizing their condition.

Three Suriname soldiers required additional treatment at a hospital in Paramiribo, three hours away.

Lt. Col. Fran McCabe, an individual mobilization augmentee from the Pentagon, and Staff Sgt. Mackenzie Schroeder of the 934th ASTS agreed to ride in the ambulance with the soldiers so they could continue to provide care en route.

After they began their trip to Paramaribo, many of the remaining Surinamese soldiers began to show symptoms of the illness. The deployed team members began IV fluids for three more soldiers.

When Colonel McCabe and Sergeant Schroeder returned to base camp after six hours of traveling, they quickly volunteered to assist the new group of ill soldiers through the dark jungle to the city of Paramaribo. They provided critical patient care to their friends and co-workers and in the end worked almost a full 24-hour day.

Realizing they had the opportunity to possibly educate and prevent another outbreak from occurring in the future, the deployed military public health team inspected the Surinamese living quarters. They found thawed and refrozen foods, shared water bottles, lack of soap, use of contaminated river water and generally poor hygiene practices, especially when it came to hand washing.

With that information, the reservists gave their hosts an impromptu field hygiene class.

"While the deployment was two straight weeks of non-stop work, it was rewarding work that none of us will ever forget or regret," Sergeant Holbeck said. "The opportunity to assist our friends in such a far away and unique place is one that each of us should feel blessed to be a part of. From the amazing animals and plants of the jungle to the surprisingly grateful and generous people, our trip to Suriname truly allowed us all to appreciate our works beyond the horizon." (Air Force Reserve Command News Service)