Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Crystal Harlow | Spc. Joshua Binion of the 7241st Medical Support Unit takes a man’s vitals Sunday,...... read more read more
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POMEROY, Ohio - Citizens of Meigs County recently benefited from a 10-day medical event aimed to restore health in the residents of the community and their four-legged friends.
Army Reserve Soldiers alongside, Navy Sailors, set up clinics at their new duty station from June 2 -11 at Meigs High School to conduct the Ohio River Medical Mission as part of their annual training. This mission was orchestrated to provide free health care and veterinarian services to the local community.
"Warrior Medics" of the Southeast Medical Area Readiness Support Group, Army Reserve Medical Command provided free medical, behavioral health, dental and optical screening services to residents of Meigs County, Ohio, through the Innovative Readiness Training program's partnership with Meigs County. All services provided were on a first-come, first-served basis.
“An event like this helps a lot,” expressed Jenny Taylor, a resident of Pomeroy who attended the event for a vision screening. “With everybody that doesn’t have very much money and can’t really go to the doctor – it’s very beneficial.”
“If this event were held next year I would definitely come back,” said Taylor
Along with the screenings, residents received treatment corresponding to their ailments. For example, if someone failed the vision test and required corrective lenses, glasses were made for them on-location and were ready for pick-up within the hour.
The dental service provided X-rays, tooth extractions, tooth reconstruction, fillings, cleanings, and education on dental hygiene and advice for keeping a healthy smile.
“They seem very grateful for the patient education that I’ve given them,” said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Aja Nichols, a dentist with the 4th Dental Battalion. “I’ve had multiple patients say that no one has ever explained what a cavity was, or a calculus, or periodontal disease, or what happens when you lose bone… so I’ve had some very grateful patients.”
Even family pets joined the quest for free medical and health readiness. Dogs and cats received basic exams, certain vaccinations and some were spayed or neutered.
Lt. Col. Timothy Dayton, the former commander of the 7241st Medical Support Unit and a key organizer of this medical mission, stated that there will be initial and long-term benefits for the residents participating in the event.
“We found diabetes, we found glaucoma, and we’ve found certain chronic diseases that the person never knew they had,” said Dayton.
“We haven’t turned anyone away but there have been problems that have been beyond our capability,” said Dayton. “It’s my understanding that these patients received a voucher to receive care [for their ailments at a local medical center].”
Volunteers from law enforcement, Ohio University and the local community also helped make this event a success.
This IRT mission provided service members who supported the event a wealth of knowledge and experience, as well as mission essential field training, and an opportunity to give back to the local community.
“Our mission was to provide the highest quality care through the best patient experience… and we executed that mission every day,” stated Lt. Col. Brian Poyner, commander of the 7241st MSU and the officer in charge of this medical mission.
“This is a true, real-world clinical application of their MOSs [military occupational skills].”
“For two weeks of fairly intensive patient flow, these folks have been able to refresh the training that they’ve received in the past and also to sustain it,” said Dayton. “If they were deployed into another area I believe that this training would help prepare them for the kinds of problems they would be seeing in that environment.”
Nichols said that the number of happy faces could not be counted.
“Patients are very grateful that we’re here, we have received many hugs and cards.”
| Date Taken: | 07.07.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 07.07.2015 00:30 |
| Story ID: | 169212 |
| Location: | POMEROY, OHIO, US |
| Web Views: | 254 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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