Comfort deploys

By JO2 J. Ellen Maurer, USN

Navy dentist Capt. Joel Funari, USN (second on left), and dental technician, DT3 Fortunato de la Cruz, USN (right), use a translator to discuss possible denture options for a patient aboard USNS Comfort. The ship held a three-day clinic in Tallinn, Estonia. JO2 Ellen Maurer, USN, photo

Five weeks after leaving her layberth in Baltimore, Md., Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort and crew are now heading back home after participating in joint medical training exercise Rescuer/Medical Exercise Central Europe, or Rescuer/MEDCEUR '02, in the Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

"I think the biggest impact we had on the people in the Baltic region is that we showed them that we are interested in working with them medically," said Capt. Charles Blankenship, USN, Comfort's Medical Treatment Facility commanding officer. "During the exercise, they got a chance to learn from us, and we also got a chance to learn from them."

Comfort's Medical Treatment Facility provided training in rescue, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and joint medical operations. The exercise involved 3,500 people from seven countries including Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Germany, Sweden and the United States. The entire exercise was not only a test of interoperability, but also forged new friendships among participants.

Comfort's first stop for the exercise was a three-day anchorage off the coastal city of Klaipeda in Lithuania, where MTF staff were given the unique opportunity to medically consult local patients, both aboard the ship and at a local hospital. The crew also gained new perspective on the traditional culture of Lithuania when a musical group of folk dancers performed a concert on the ship's flight deck.

After departing Lithuania, Comfort proceeded to Leipaja, Latvia, where the ship hosted a small reception and tour for some of the country's leadership, including the deputy commander of the Latvian Armed Forces. The meeting focused on NATO's Partnership for Peace program and the importance of working together with neighboring countries and allies.

HM3 (FMF) Melissa Carrillo, USN, examines her patient's eyes during a three-day clinic held in Tallinn, Estonia, aboard hospital ship USNS Comfort. JO2 Ellen Maurer, USN, photo

Comfort's next stop was the port of Tallinn, Estonia, where she prepared for the major exercise portion of the mission, a mock mass casualty July 25-27. Over the three-day-period, U.S. MTF staff worked side-by-side with host nation medical personnel to receive nearly 200 simulated patients, mostly Estonian volunteers from the local community who were done up to look like they had suffered various traumas. Working as a team, the medical staff sorted the patients and cared for them as if the scenario were real.

In fact, some patients did not even have to pretend. While in Tallinn, the ship and its medical staff also hosted real-world dental and eye clinics, providing care to more than 300 dental patients and nearly 360 eye patients. All together, the medical staff estimates they made more than 500 pairs of eyeglasses and performed close to 70 oral surgeries aboard the ship in just three days.

"It was a unique experience because I had never done a humanitarian mission before," explained DT3 Marcus Sanchez, USN. "At one point, I remember that I walked outside the clinic door for a minute and I was in scrubs. Immediately, about two or three patients ran up to me and hugged me. I guess they thought I was a doctor. I was overwhelmed at how appreciative they were and how much it meant to them to be getting this type of care from us."

While underway and in-port, and throughout the entire mission, one of the ship's main objectives was to train and educate its U.S. medical personnel, as well as those from other participating countries. Cumulatively, instructors conducted more than 50 medical, nursing and shipboard operational training courses aboard Comfort, with topics ranging from advanced cardiac life support seminars to life raft survival.

"We did have obstacles to overcome, like the language barrier," explained the Comfort training officer, Lt. Cmdr. Patricia Whitmore, USN. "So, we had to teach using not only words, but also illustrations and demonstrations. I think, overall, people got the training they needed, and many of Comfort's U.S. medical staff also earned continuing education credits."

During closing ceremonies for the exercise held July 28 in downtown Tallinn, Rescuer/MEDCEUR '02 officially ended.

"Comfort's part in the exercise went really well, mostly due to the crew's flexibility," added Capt. Blankenship. "If you have a good crew, you'll have a successful mission."

Comfort is projected to make another stop in Southampton, where most of her crew will leave the ship and fly back to Baltimore to their regular duty stations. Most of the MTF staff is primarily assigned the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. A small group of fewer than 200 Sailors in addition to the civilian mariner crew will stay aboard the ship during her sail back to the United States.

Nurses and doctors from the Baltic region, as well as the United Kingdom, familiarize themselves with Comfort’s casualty receiving area by practicing emergency medical assistance on computerized prosthetic patients. Navy nurse Lt. Thomas Witherspoon, USN (center), explains that casualty receiving is the first place most patients will be brought for assessment when they arrive aboard. JO2 Ellen Maurer, USN, photo

One of two Navy hospital ships, Comfort is 894-feet long and essentially a hospital within a ship, able to offer a full spectrum of surgical and medical services. The ship is crewed by civilian merchant mariners and the MTF is staffed by active duty Navy personnel. In the case of a large-scale disaster, the MTF aboard Comfort may be activated to crew a 1,000-bed hospital facility, increasing the crew to 1,214 Navy personnel.

Comfort's primary mission is to provide emergency, on-site care for U.S. combatant forces deployed in war or other operations. Comfort's secondary mission is to provide full hospital services to support U.S. disaster relief and humanitarian operations worldwide.

Comfort has participated in events around the world since delivering to the Navy in 1987. She served in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1990; she assisted with the Haitian migrant operations in the Caribbean in 1994; she activated Sept. 11, 2001, in response to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and she has participated in various multi-national exercises.

Comfort is normally kept in reduced operating status in Baltimore. Eighteen civilian mariners maintain the ship in ROS, and 58 Navy personnel maintain the MTF. When required, Comfort can transition to full operating status in five days. In FOS, the ship's civilian mariner crew increases to 61 civilian mariners.