Aid in Action
USAID and U.S. Military work together to care for earthquake victims
Bantul |
Thursday, June 08, 2006
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USAID/Basic Human Services Program
A U.S. Navy Medical Specialist offers assistance to a young patient at the U.S. Military’s field hospital in Bantul. USAID is providing vehicles, medical supplies, and translators to the field hospital.
USAID and the U.S. military are working together to provide urgent medical care for earthquake victims in the Yogyakarta region. This close cooperation has resulted in expanded medical coverage in heavily damaged areas.
Immediately following the earthquake, USAID and military staff worked together with local government officials and the Indonesian military to identify a site to base a U.S. military field hospital in close proximity to earthquake victims. Within days, 175 military doctors, medical and support personnel had established a state-of-the-art field hospital and were treating patients. The hospital offered surgical, trauma and other medical care to over 1,000 patients in its first four days.
USAID has contributed significantly to the field hospitals’ daily operations. Many of the hospitals’ patients are identified and referred from USAID-funded relief supply distribution sites. USAID also worked with implementing partner, IOM, to secure a fleet of vehicles that transports patients to and from the field hospital, providing a safe and rapid way for patients and their families to access medical care.
USAID has continues to help the hospital function smoothly, supplementing it with WHO-approved medical kits that include basic first aid materials as well as more advanced antibiotics and drugs. U.S. military doctors describe the kits as among the most useful and comprehensive disaster relief supplies available. USAID has also funded a staff of interpreters who translate the doctors’ directions for patients, many of whom only speak the local dialect.
Dr. Tom Davis, Navy Commander and Trauma Surgeon at the field hospital described the value of the tight cooperation between the military and USAID in this effort. I’ve worked with USAID three times in disaster situations across Asia, including following the tsunami. In each case, we’ve worked together in a seamless fashion to do the most we can for those affected.”