Here's how you know
 **Official websites use .mil** .mil
 **Secure .mil websites use HTTPS** lock () https://


Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 Toggle navigation
            
            
            
            
            National Guard
                        Always Ready Always There
                    National Guard
            
            Search National Guard:
                        Search
                    Search
                        Search National Guard:
                            Search
    Home

    News
    
        Guard News

    Overseas Operations

    State Partnership Program

    News Features

    RSS Feeds

    Press Releases

    Transcripts

    Features
    
        Features by Year

    Posture Statement

    State Partnership Program

    Special Features

    About the Guard
    
        How We Began

    Air National Guard

    Army National Guard    
    
        DEERS Soldier Journey

    Leader Development Program

    History and Heritage

    I am the Guard

    NGB Official March

    Leadership
    
        CNGB

    VCNGB

    SEA

    DANG

    DARNG

    Joint Staff    
    
        J-1

    J-2

    J-3

    J-4

    J-5

    J-6

    J-7

    J-8

    Personal Staff    
    
        Inspector General

    General Counsel

    Public Affairs

    Executive Support Services

    Legislative Liaison

    Special Staff    
    
        National Guard Office of Special Victims' Counsel

    Office of the Provost Marshal

    Office of the Joint Surgeon

    Director of Acquisitions

    Small Business Programs

    Chaplain

    Senior Leader Management Office

    Diversity Equity Inclusion

    Comptroller

    Resources    
        National Defense Strategy Implementation Guidance

    Community Engagement

    FOIA

    Fact Sheets

    Helpful Links

    Image Gallery
    
        News Images

    Graphics

    Historical Paintings

    Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

    Legislative Liaison

    Small Business Programs

    Social Media

    State Websites

    Videos    
    
        Featured Videos

    On Every Front

    2019 Videos

    2020 Videos

    2021 Videos

    Suicide Prevention

    Family Programs

    Environmental

    Trial Defense Service

    Holistic Wellness Challenge

    Contact Us  Home
  News
  Overseas Operations
 
 Download
 Details
 Share
 NEWS
 Congolese teach important skills in disease prevention to U.S. service members during MEDLITE 11 By Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Orrell
                National Guard Bureau
 KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of the Congo (4/29/11) - For a change of pace at the MEDLITE 11 medical exercise training, members of the Democratic Republic of the Congo's military medical group took the podium Thursday and trained U.S. service members about the dangers of tropical diseases at the auditorium of the Centre Superior Militaire Academy here. Members of the U.S. and Congolese military listened to briefings from DRC Colonel's Omer Djembe Kitenge and Maurice Puate, in their respective languages, thanks to interpreters. "Your armed forces travel a lot, and because tropical diseases don't make themselves noticeable quickly, it is important to educate yourself on how to prevent these diseases in both treatment and prevention," said Puate, who is the coordinator of the fight against tuberculosis for the DRC military. With a high risk of becoming infected by a tropical disease such as malaria and tuberculosis, Dijembe Kitenge and Puate stressed the importance of education and awareness. "When a person becomes too sick, they miss work which reduces our capability to fight, and it can become quite dangerous," said Dijembe Kitenge, who is the coordinator of the fight against malaria for the DRC military. "That's why during this training it has been so important for us to learn from them and for them to learn from us," he said. With about 72 million citizens, just over one-fourth the size of the United States, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has almost twice the amount of daily deaths, many of those from diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis. "Our country is an endemic country," Dijembe Kitenge said. "That is why we have to share our experiences, because as Soldiers, we need to ensure that our American friends, who do not have malaria in their country, are safe while here and safe after they return home," he said. According to the Centers for Disease Control, malaria has an incubation time of seven to 30 days and can be avoided if the proper anti-malarial drug is taken. "You should be very careful and always aware of the effects and possibilities of these tropical diseases," Dijembe Kitenge said. "After today, I hope that everyone understands the danger of these diseases." Air Force Col. Joe Maslar, the chief of aerospace medicine for the Illinois Air National Guard's 182nd Airlift Wing and an emergency room doctor for a hospital in Chicago, Ill., said that the threat of tropical diseases in the U.S. are not even close to the threat as they are here and that is part of the problem when it comes to prevention. "In the states we don't see it, we think it's a disease of other people," Maslar said. "When we come here we're cavalier, but we need to realize that people die from this every day. "That is why service members tend to become complacent when it comes to the prevention of these diseases, then they end up getting very sick, when they could have just taken their pills and avoided this all together. "We don't give malaria the respect that we should, it's something [the Congolese] deal with every day and when 20-40 percent of their hospitalizations a day are due to malaria, it gives us more knowledge to bring back to the troops and more ammunition to help prevent this disease in service members.” After the training, Air Force 1st Lt. Jodi Smith, a flight nurse with the Wyoming Air National Guard's 187th Airlift Wing and an emergency room nurse for a Veterans Affairs hospital, said she was very happy with the detail and passion that was shown by the Congolese trainers. "They did a fantastic job with their teaching," she said. "They are very knowledgeable and well-educated and we are able to understand each other at the same [skill] level, so this is going to add to our education level as well." Puate felt that the training was well-received and was happy with the continued relationship that has been building since 2010. "The American's with us here have been helping the Congolese Army with health services training this year and the continued relationship we built with last year’s [MEDFLAG 10] exercise," he said. "I am very pleased and happy to be briefing U.S. service members, and we have become close and we really complement each other." In closing Maslar recalled a statistic from the training that he said would stay with him and keep him motivated to educate and coordinate the proper usage of anti-malarial medication. "Every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria, and every year one-to-two million die," he said. MEDLITE 11 is an exercise that aims to improve the readiness of both countries' medical personnel and will consist of classroom instruction, an aeromedical-evacuation training scenario and will conclude with a mass-casualty exercise May 4.
 SHARE
 PRINT
 NY National Guard Strengthens Bonds with Allies in Morocco Overseas Operations • 6 days ago
 Alaska Guard Soldiers Honored Before Middle East Deployment Overseas Operations • 13 days ago
 29th Infantry Division HQ Heads Exercise Immediate Response Overseas Operations • 18 days ago
 134th Medical Company Joins Combined Resolve Exercise Overseas Operations • 19 days ago
 Guard Soldiers, Czech Partners Celebrate Victory in Europe Day Overseas Operations • 21 days ago
 2024 (24)  2023 (57)  2022 (71)  2021 (58)  2020 (41)  2019 (56)  2018 (55)  2017 (46)  2016 (31)  2015 (36)  2014 (48)  2013 (64)  2012 (134)  2011 (163)  2010 (179)
 Home
 Site Map
 Privacy & Security Policy
 Link Disclaimer
 Web Policy
 DOD Information Quality
 DOD Open GovernmentFOIA
 No FEAR Act
 Accessibility/Section 508
 Contact Us
 Army Guard Careers
 Air Guard Careers
 USA.gov
                    
Staying Connected
    XYouTubeFlickrFacebookInstagram
                 
                
                

Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil