An official website of the United States government         Here's how you know         
**Official websites use .mil**
A **.mil** website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
**Secure .mil websites use HTTPS**
 A **lock (lock )** or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Skip to main content (Press Enter).

U.S. Southern Command

Search
Search

Search

-  Home		 
-  About    -  About Main             
  -  Area of Responsibility             
  -  Leadership             
  -  SOUTHCOM Components and Units             
  -  History             
  -  SOUTHCOM Inspector General 
-  Commander's Priorities    -  Commander's Priorities Main             
  -  Strengthen Partnerships      -  Theater Maintenance Partnership Initiative (TMPI) 
  -  Counter Threats             
  -  Build Our Team 
-  Media    -  Media Main             
  -  News             
  -  Press Releases             
  -  Photos             
  -  Videos             
  -  Speeches | Transcripts             
  -  Special Coverage             
  -  SOUTHCOM Podcast 
-  USAG-M / Military-Family Services    -  U.S. Army Garrison-Miami      -  Equal Employment Opportunity Office 
  -  Overview of Services at SOUTHCOM             
  -  About the SOUTHCOM Installation and Local Community             
  -  Miami Family and MWR      -  Army Community Services             
    -  Child, Youth and School Services             
    -  Leisure Travel Services             
    -  Fitness Center 
  -  Visiting SOUTHCOM             
  -  Army Health Clinic SOUTHCOM             
  -  Hurricane Preparedness Info             
  -  Conference Center of the Americas             
  -  Theater Clearance Info             
  -  SOUTHCOM Chaplain             
  -  TEAM SOUTHCOM - Total Engagement for All Members of U.S. Southern Command             
  -  Logistics Readiness Center-Miami             
  -  Public Notice – Environmental Assessment for the Construction of a Military Housing Development             
  -  SHARP (SAPR) 
-  Newcomers    -  Newcomers Main             
  -  Sponsor Request             
  -  Directions to SOUTHCOM             
  -  Army Newcomers             
  -  Navy Newcomers             
  -  Air Force Newcomers             
  -  Marine Corps Newcomers             
  -  Coast Guard Newcomers             
  -  Reserve Newcomers             
  -  Civilian Newcomers             
  -  Contractor Newcomers             
  -  Family Member Newcomers             
  -  Newcomers to Overseas Locations in SOUTHCOM 
-  Work With Us    -  Employment | Careers             
  -  Public / Private Cooperation             
  -  Operational Contract Support             
  -  SOUTHCOM Industry Engagement 
-  FOIA    -  FOIA Main             
  -  How to file A FOIA Request             
  -  FOIA Fees and Exemptions             
  -  Your FOIA Rights             
  -  ​FOIA Reading Room 
-  Contact    -  Contact SOUTHCOM             
  -  Community Requests             
  -  FAQ             
  -  Contact SOUTHCOM Inspector General             
  -  Directions to SOUTHCOM 

HomeMediaNews

PHOTO INFORMATION

** Download

** Details

** Share

# Preventive Healthcare: Comfort's Plan Heading into First Stop

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Waldrop

CARIBBEAN SEA (NNS) -- Moving closer to providing care in the first country of an 11-week medical mission in support of Enduring Promise 2018, providers and corpsmen aboard hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) are eager to execute a major initiative­ — preventive health care.

A person’s body is affected by environmental factors, genetic predisposition, disease agents and lifestyle choices. Preventive medicine consists of a variety of different ways to mitigate factors that contribute to many human health conditions, ranging from immunizations to educating people on proper hygiene and diet.

“Preventive medicine has a place in every aspect of this mission,” said Cmdr. Shannon Blackmer, Preventive Medicine Team (PMT) leader aboard Comfort. “Our job is to keep the ship’s crew, all of the providers and everyone that is part of the mission, healthy and injury-free so that they can complete their mission and treat patients.”

Preventive health providers will be among the first to go ashore to ensure locations are sanitized properly and prepared to take patients.

“We have a robust preventive medicine team that will be on shore at the sites to monitor for anything that might increase the risk of disease transmission or injury, and ensure that all efforts are being made to keep risks low,” said Blackmer. “They will also be assisting the med-site team.”

Along with providers from around the world, U.S. Navy corpsmen, who augment the Comfort’s staff, will also be on-site to assist in any way they can.

“Preventive medicine is looking at the things that people don’t tend to look at,” said Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Termaine Favors, a member of the PMT. “We’re here to remind people of all the things that are commonly overlooked - things like hygiene, hydration and eating habits.”

While treating all patients is a priority, educating and treating children will be one of Comfort’s primary goals in order to create a healthier foundation for future generations.

“Even though it sounds simple, teaching about how to wash your hands - the fact that you have bacteria or viruses on your hands and teaching children about basic hygiene - goes a long way,” said Blackmer. “We also have our entomologist and our microbiologist that are going to set up stations to demonstrate what malaria looks like under a microscope and giving children a chance to look at insects under a microscope.”

The PMT will also be focusing on the crew’s safety while at sea. They will be responsible for water and ice surveillance, food safety, sanitation conditions, heat-stress monitoring and keeping immunization records updated.

“We do everything we can to find out what the hazards are to our force’s health and do everything we can to mitigate those risks,” said Blackmer.

Comfort is on an 11-week medical support mission to Central and South America as part of U.S. Southern Command’s Enduring Promise initiative. Working with health and government partners in Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and Honduras, the embarked medical team will provide care on board and at land-based medical sites, helping to relieve pressure on national medical systems caused partly by an increase in cross-border migrants. The deployment reflects the United States’ enduring promise of friendship, partnership and solidarity with the Americas.

For more information, visit www.facebook.com/NAVSOUS4THFLT, www.dvidshub.net/feature/comfort2018, and www.navy.mil. 

Get more information about the Navy from U.S. Navy Facebook or Twitter.

For more news from U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command & U.S. 4th Fleet, visit www.navy.mil/local/cusns/.

 

**                    SHARE                

**                    PRINT                

USNS Comforthospital shipMedical AssistanceLatin AmericaSouth AmericaCentral Americahumanitarian