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Humanitarian Medical Efforts Play Key Role in USAFRICOM Success

  • Published
  • By Daniel Henry
  • Health.mil
FALLS CHURCH, Va. --  The primary role of the U.S. Africa Command, USAFRICOM, may be to lead U.S. military relations throughout the continent and provide a strong U.S. presence in a time of global terrorism and threats to regional stability, but providing healthcare and addressing humanitarian needs could be its most powerful and lasting legacy.

USAFRICOM, established in 2007 as one of the Department of Defense's six geographic combatant commands, has led the effort to galvanize cooperation and support from African Nations and the African Union for regional security. Command officials have gained the trust and support of local nations by sharing U.S. medical knowledge and expertise. From controlling disease carrying mosquitos in Djibouti, to conducting mobile medical outreach with U.S.-trained military medical personnel in Liberia, the command's medical and humanitarian impact is felt far and wide.

After learning of the need for eye care among Djiboutian military members during a joint exercise, U.S. Army Doctor Richard Birdsong, an ophthalmologist serving with the Combined Joint task Force - Horn of Africa, set up an eye clinic for local soldiers and their families. CJTF-HOA, a subordinate command to USAFRICOM, had been conducting a civil affairs exercise when doctors from the Djibouti Armed Forces Health Services told Dr. Birdsong about several patients with severe eye problems that were beyond local capabilities.

Birdsong jumped in to address the problem, partnering with a family medicine doctor from the DJAF. The ability to provide care where needed was the only consideration, he said.

"The patients at the clinic are no different than American patients--they were friendly and welcoming," said Birdsong, in an interview with CJTF-HOA public affairs. "The only difference was the language barrier, but we had translators on hand, so it worked out well."

USAFRICOM preventive medicine specialists work with locals to limit the mosquito population in order to prevent vector borne illnesses.

According to U.S. Air Force Capt. Dan Anderson, who directs the mosquito-control program at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, the primary purpose is to protect forces, both U.S. and in-country, from exposure to mosquito borne illnesses.

"There are certain types of mosquitoes that transmit diseases such as malaria and dengue fever. We have a high level of interest from a medical standpoint if those types of mosquitoes are present or near Camp Lemonnier because it could impact our mission and the health of our personnel," he said in an interview with USAFRICOM public affairs.

In addition, U.S. and local medical personnel have partnered together to train local military healthcare workers and deliver basic healthcare to underserved populations throughout the region.

In early July, U.S. service members joined Armed Forces of Liberia soldiers to conduct a mobile medical outreach mission that visited several remote villages, treating approximately 2,000 patients.

The ability to provide a service like this, with help from U.S. medical personnel, is a big step forward for AFL forces.
According to U.S. Air Force Major Joshua Latham, M.D., a medical adviser for Operation Onward Liberty, which provides mentorship and support to the AFL, the local medical service infrastructure and training needed to improve significantly before they could carry out the mission.

The AFL spent several years training under the watchful eye of U.S. medical professionals who had deployed to Liberia with OOL, Latham noted in an interview with USAFRICOM public affairs.

The sprawling USAFRICOM command has also worked to address the root causes of disease and illness through its Humanitarian Assistance, or "HA" program, which works with local organizations to ensure better nutrition through healthier agriculture practices and through CJTF-HOA's One Health training program, which teaches local healthcare workers and veterinarians how to deal with diseases that affect both humans and animals.

The ability to meet various medical and humanitarian needs of partner countries has led to greater trust between them and the U.S. and has made U.S. military missions in the region and USAFRICOM as a whole more successful. For additional information on the many humanitarian and healthcare-related missions that the command has carried out, please visit theUSAFRICOM website and Public Affairs directorate.

Learn more about DoD's global health engagement on Health.mil.