journal 040215

Vol. 27 No. 13 www.cnic.navy.mil/bethesda/ April 2, 2015

By Andrew DamstedtNSAB Public Affairs

staff writer

One patient needed a leftleg amputated; another neededtreatment for intra-abdominalbleeding. Nearby, one more hada collapsed lung and yet an-other had suffered a traumaticbrain injury.

Additional patients down-stairs needed to be evacuatedto a safe room after a shootercame through a first-floor roomat the Uniformed Services Uni-versity of the Health Sciences(USUHS). Outside, a patientneeded to be ferried over acreek.

These and other trainingscenarios were part of Op-eration Gunpowder, a two-daycourse put on by the USUHSDepartment of Military andEmergency Medicine for third-year medical students.

“We basically got thrown ina stressful situation with mini-mal preparation. I think whatit showed is how we react asa team and as individuals inthese situations that we havebasically no idea what’s goingon. I think it showed a lot aboutourselves and how we can im-prove,” said Navy Ensign AlexMarrotte, a third-year medicalschool student. “Ultimately itwill make us better when wedo have that chance to prepareto be fit and optimal.”

One of his teammates on thefirst day, Air Force 2nd Lt. Al-exandra Papp, said that whileit was stressful at the time, thetraining will pay off in the fu-ture. Their team was debrief-ing on their performance in theactive shooter scenario, whichhad four volunteers dressed incut suits — simulators worn bymock patients that allow ac-tual cutting, suturing, etc, andalso produce fake blood to helpmake the situation realistic.

“There are things that wecould improve on that hope-fully we’ll be able to do betterin the future,” Papp said, not-ing that she especially wanted

to do well in the second-day ad-venture race.

This is the second year forOperation Gunpowder, a two-day event which takes placetwice during the last weekin March. The goal is to helpbuild team leadership skills,said event organizer NavyCmdr. (Dr.) James Palma,USUHS assistant professor.

“We feel this exercise isteam-based so they certainlyneed to look at themselves andsee what their leadership ortheir followership styles areand how they can interact withother people,” Palma said. “Butthey also need to recognize theteam dynamics.”

During the two days thatapproximately 160 studentsweren’t participating in Opera-tion Gunpowder, they were tak-ing an Advanced Trauma LifeSupport (ATLS) class.

“It’s been fun,” said Air Force2nd Lt. Hannah Morehouse,who participated in the eventafter taking the ATLS class.“Now with the team environ-ment it seems like it changes

things, which is fun, and makesit more real.”

In the woods outside USUHS,students were taught improvi-sation techniques and how tobuild a one-rope bridge to ferrya patient across a creek.

“It’s rare that you actuallyhave the opportunity to buildone-rope bridges, and to learnthe different techniques to helpyou successfully get acrosssomething like this,” said ArmySgt. 1st Class Rodrigues Kim-brough, part of the USUHSstaff. “This is different. This isnot the regular medical train-ing. This is awesome.”

Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) JustinWoodson, USUHS associateprofessor, taught students howto tie knots and supervisedthem as they built their ownone-rope bridge across a streamto transport a patient.

“I’m trying to teach themhow to think a little bit outsidewhat they’re normally exposedto,” Woodson said. “These arenot skills that are necessarycritical; it’s just getting them tothink about the idea: That if I

know that this needs to happenbased on my medical trainingand expertise — can I make ithappen when I don’t have theinfrastructure and resources ofthe hospital?”

On the second day, the medi-cal school students were putinto different teams than thefirst day to reflect how mili-tary teams are always chang-ing, Palma said. The secondday was an adventure race, inwhich students practiced skillslearned the previous day withtheir new team members.

Navy Ensign Camille Egge-broten said the adventure racewas a good way to use eachothers’ strengths, and that sheenjoyed the more physical chal-lenges like the litter carry andobstacle course.

“I thought it was a reallygood mix of a bunch of differentskills that we’ve been learn-ing really since we’ve started,building on each other andgetting more hands-on experi-ence and adding a little bit ofstress,” Eggebroten said. “Itwas a lot of making sure you

work well with a variety of dif-ferent people.”

The exercise focuses notonly on military care, but alsoleadership, said Army Col. (Dr.)Francis O’Connor, USUHS Mil-itary and Emergency MedicineDepartment chair.

“It integrates a lot of theirclassroom teaching into a fieldpractical exercise that willpay dividends,” O’Connor said.“We’re directly translating les-sons learned from the combattheater of operations to righthere.”

Navy Lt. Cmdr. (Dr.) Shan-non Reeve, who works at Wal-ter Reed National MilitaryMedical Center’s emergencyroom department, helped teachthe students how to treat a pa-tient with a collapsed lung.

“They’re improving as theygo through each station; youcan tell the groups are learn-ing to communicate better witheach other, and people are morecomfortable in taking a lead-ership role,” Reeve observed.“They seem to be relaxed a bitand having more fun with it,too.”

Robin Thrasher, a WRNMMCemergency department nurse,said he brought a nurse’s per-spective to the training wherehe helped the students dur-ing the traumatic brain injurysimulation. One of his goals,he said, was getting the medi-cal school students to trust inthe other medical team playersafter giving them instructions— instead of being hands-on allthe time.

“A lot of new physicians,when you get in certain situ-ations, they try to do a lot bythemselves; they try to run ev-erything by themselves, to keeptrack of everything,” Thrashersaid. “When you get in situa-tions like this so much happensrapidly, they need to learn thatyou can’t control everything byyourself. So there [are] otherassets that you need to learn todepend on.”

Medical Students Learn Leadership During ‘Operation Gunpowder’

Photo by Andrew Damstedt

A team of Uniformed Service University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) medi-cal students take part in the litter-carry obstacle course, in the woods acrossfrom USUHS, in which they had to transport a dummy patient over one wall andthrough the window of another wall, during the adventure race on the second dayof ‘Operation Gunpowder.’

See STUDENTS page 6

2 Thursday, April 2, 2015 The Journal

Published by offset every Thurs-day by Comprint Military Publi-cations, 9030 Comprint Court,Gaithersburg, Md. 20877, aprivate firm in no way con-nected with the U.S. Navy,under exclusive written con-tract with Naval Support ActivityBethesda, Md. This commercialenterprise newspaper is an autho-rized publication for members of themilitary services. Contents of The Journalare not necessarily the official views of, norendorsed by, the U.S. Government, theDepartment of Defense, or the Departmentof Navy. The appearance of advertising inthis publication, including inserts or supple-ments, does not constitute endorsement bythe Department of Defense or Comprint,Inc., of the products or services advertised.Everything advertised in this publicationshall be made available for purchase, useor patronage without regard to race, color,

religion, sex, national origin,age, marital status, physicalhandicap, political affiliationor any other non-merit fac-tor of the purchaser, user,or patron. Editorial contentis edited, prepared and pro-vided by the Public AffairsOffice, Naval Support Activ-

ity Bethesda, Md. News copyshould be submitted to the Pub-

lic Affairs Office, Building 17, first floor,across from PSD, by noon one week pre-ceding the desired publication date. Newsitems are welcomed from all installationsources. Inquiries about news copy will beanswered by calling 301-295-1803. Com-mercial advertising should be placed withthe publisher by calling 301-921-2800.Publisher’s advertising offices are locatedat 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, Md.20877. Classified ads can be placed bycalling 301-670-1700.

Naval Support Activity (NSA) BethesdaCommanding Officer: Capt. David A. BitontiPublic Affairs Officer: Ronald D. InmanPublic Affairs Office: 301-295-1803

Journal StaffManaging Editor MC3 Hank GettysWRNMMC Editor Bernard Little

Staff Writers MC1 Christopher KruckeAndrew DamstedtSarah MarshallKatrina SkinnerSharon Renee Taylor

NSABethesdaFleet And Family Support Center 301-319-4087

Walter Reed National Military Medical CenterOffice of Media Relations 301-295-5727

NSAB Emergency Information Line 301-295-6246NSAB OmbudsmanMichelle Herrera 240-370-5421

NSAB Chaplain’s Office 301-319-4443/4706

Sexual Assault ResponseCoordinator Hotline 301-442-2053

Visit us on Facebook:Naval Support Activity Bethesda page:https://www.facebook.com/NSABethesda

Walter Reed National Medical Center page:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Walter-Reed-National-Military-Medical-Center/295857217111107

Uniformed Services University of the HealthSciences page:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Uniformed-Services-University-of-the-Health-Sciences/96338890888?fref=ts

Lent, Easter Services in ChapelThe Department of Pastoral Careat Walter Reed Bethesda will hostHoly Thursday Service, CatholicMass at 4:30 p.m. today in the cha-pel. Tomorrow, the chapel will haveGood Friday Services at 10 a.m. forProtestant Worship and 3 p.m. forCatholic service. NSAB’s ReligiousMinistry Department will also holda Good Friday Service with musicat the Bethesda USO Warrior andFamily Center from noon until 1p.m. Friday. Sunday, the chapelhosts Easter services for CatholicMass at 9 a.m., and 10:30 a.m. forProtestant worship. The chapel is inBldg. 8, first floor. Services can alsobe viewed on the Chapel and FlagChannel (channel 14) throughoutthe hospital. For more information,call the WRNMMC Departmentof Pastoral Care at 301-295-1510,or the NSAB Religious MinistryDepartment at 319-5058.

Prostate Cancer Support GroupThe Prostate Cancer SupportGroup meets at Walter ReedNational Military Medical Centerthe third Thursday of every month.The next meeting will be April 16from 1 to 2 p.m. in the AmericaBuilding, second floor, Room 2525,and from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., AmericaBuilding, River Conference Room,third floor. Spouses and partnersare invited. Military ID is requiredfor base access to WRNMMC. Forthose without a military ID, callProstate Center at 301-319-2900at least four business days priorto event for base access. For moreinformation, contact retired Col.Jane Hudak at 301-319-2918 [email protected].

Bethesda Notebook

The Word became flesh or, as theGood News Translation simply says,“The Word [Jesus] became a humanbeing and. . . lived among us.” (John1:14). When Jesus became flesh hedid not become partly human. Jesuswas truly a humanman… and Jesusis truly our Savior.Jesus had blood, sweat, and tears.

He ate food, got thirsty and slept. Hefelt cold, became annoyed, and feltpain. Jesus had amind to reason anda will to resist temptation. Jesus hadfriends, experienced loneliness, andeven attended friendly parties where he drank wine(like the wedding in Cana). As Christians, we arecomfortable with Jesus having emotions. He wept.He got angry. He experience betrayal and rejection.Jesus had troubles on His mind, He worked, and Hegot tired, just like the rest of us.Yes, Jesus is very hu-man…that is one of the reasons why we love Him so.He was a human being, just like the rest of us.The love here is that Jesus became human so that

He could be near us, to know us. He is not a sinner.God the Son, took our sins onto Himself on the cross.He became sin for us. Jesus became a human beingto save us. Jesus is our Savior.However, discovering who Jesus really is has spiri-

tually challenged many of our deep-seated assump-tions about Jesus’ humanity. Over the past centuryor so, many archeological findings are indicating theJesusmay have had awife. “Stop! I don’t want to hearthis garbage.” Those were my words when I heardthis claim for the very first time. Since then, I’ve evendiscovered how many of us dismiss this thought asblasphemous and absurd. The thought of Jesus andsexual intimacy is offensive, right? Or is it? Mostpeople just assumed until recently that Jesus wasn’tmarried. Times are changing. Not only are scholarsconsidering a married Jesus, but now, “an unmarriedor celibate Jesus is under fire.” (Mark Brumley, June2006).“The New Testament is silent on Jesus’ marital

status. Two evangelists – Matthew and Luke – tellof his miraculous conception, without sexual inter-course, and this asexual origin sets the tone for hisentire life.” (Francis Watson, Sept 2012). Was Jesusmandated to live a life of celibacy or was that a theo-

logical truth inserted into Christianthought? Jesus, very human…didHe at least feel affection towards theopposite sex? One biblical fact beforeus is that there were many womenin his circle of disciples...so do weabsolutely know? Who declared it asin for Jesus to marry? If Jesus weremarried, then when did intimacywithinmarriage become a sin?Theseare uncomfortable questions and thethought, once upon a time, about 20years ago, rocked my world.Now, 20 years later, in what is

quickly becoming a post-Christian society, the ques-tion still rocks my world. Although it’s still uncom-fortable to think about a married Jesus, I ask myself,“Does it really matter?” Does a married Jesus, a veryhuman Jesus, change the very divine Son of God whohung on the cross and died for me? No. Is my faithshaken enough to discount how the blood of Jesustrickled down His body and washed away my sins?No.Does it diminish that he died, was resurrected, as-

cended into heaven and now sits on the right hand ofGod as myAdvocate? No.Why even think about a married Jesus, especially

during Easter as we remember howmuch Jesus lovesus and how Jesus reconciled us to God the Father?Well, after 20 years of thinking about “a married Je-sus,” I made a decision to trust in just Jesus, very hu-man; Jesus, very divine.A married Jesus, doesn’t matter much to me; be-

cause, as Edward Mote, the hymnologist wrote in1834:My hope is built on nothing lessThan Jesus’ blood and righteousness.I dare not trust the sweetest frame,But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.On Christ the solid Rock I stand,All other ground is sinking sand;All other ground is sinking sand.So, it doesn’t much matter to me about the very

human Jesus being married, since being married is avery human thing.What matters is the very humanJesus was also very divine at the same time. Whatmatters is that on Easter, we will we celebrate a Res-urrected Savior, called Jesus. Hallelujah! Amen.

Chaplain’s CornerA Married Jesus! Does it really matter?

Lt. Christilene Whalen

NSAB Command Chaplain

The Journal Thursday, April 2, 2015 3

By Bernard S. LittleWRNMMC Public Affairs

staff writer

Leadership at Walter ReedNational Military MedicalCenter (WRNMMC) rolled outthe third and final phase of themedical center’s new strategicplan and icon during town hallmeetings March 10 at the med-ical center.

Focused on Readiness, Qual-ity, Research and Education,the pillars of the plan surroundthe medical center’s one prior-ity, which is the Patient Expe-rience and providing each ben-eficiary and family member an“extraordinary experience ev-ery time,” said Brig. Gen. (Dr.)Jeffrey B. Clark, WRNMMCdirector.

In January, hospital leader-ship rolled out the strategicplan’s foundations of “People”and “Stewardship and Ac-countability.” In February, theWRNMMC’s one priority andcenterpiece of its plan and icon,“Patient Experience,” was high-lighted.

During the March townhalls, WRNMMC CommandMaster Chief Tyrone Willissaid, “Before you can have agreat house you have to havea great foundation. We have agreat foundation [because] wehave great people, and I expectgreat things. In order to have

a house, you have to have pil-lars for stabilization. To havethis frame work we need fam-ily work, which is team work.We will build this great house,and [our beneficiaries] willcome, because it’s all about thepatient experience.”

Dr. Thomas Fitzpatrick,WRNMMC chief of qualityand champion for the strategicplan’s Quality pillar, explainedfocus is on the initiative tomake the medical center a“High Reliability Organiza-tion,” and that everyone is in-volved in quality patient care.

He explained duringWRNMMC’s Joint Commis-sion survey last month, whichevaluated the medical center’squality of health care, patientsafety and efficiency of admin-istrative procedures, that therewere no systemic findings byinspectors. “We did that be-cause of our commitment to

quality,” he continued, adding,“there are things we need to doeven better.

“Some things that come tomy mind are [reducing] medi-cation errors and hospital-ac-quired infections. [HROs do notaccept errors], and we need todo the same thing,” Fitzpatrickcontinued.

The physician called for in-creased focus on hand wash-ing compliance throughout themedical center, in addition tostaff training in HRO tenets,utilizing procedural checklistsand decreasing operationalvariations.

Col. (Dr.) Michael Nelson,WRNMMC director for edu-cation, training and researchand co-champion for both theEducation and Research pil-lars of the strategic plan, saidalthough WRNMMC sets thestandard in education, trainingand professional developmentvital for mission success, theremust be a continuous focus onthese efforts.

“If we continue to commit inmaking ourselves better collec-tively, we’ll provide the highestquality care for our patientsand train the next generationof health care team membersto an optimum standard like noone else in the Military HealthSystem,” Nelson continued.

Focusing on the Research

pillar, Nelson said the team isexploring avenues to improvethe timeliness of the Depart-ment of Research and Inter-nal Review Board approvalprocess, as well as funding for,and publicizing of, research byWRNMMC staff. He said thiswill provide the greatest poten-tial to benefit WRNMMC pa-tients and improving care.

Navy Capt. Kevin Prince,WRNMMC director for den-tistry and champion for themedical center’s Readiness pil-lar, explained how his team isfocused on ensuring a “readymedical force that is medicallyready.”

He said positive patient ex-periences for beneficiaries atWRNMMC, which begin evenbefore they are seen by health-care providers, drive enroll-ment and impact readiness.Increasing enrollment helpsfacilitate encounters, recap-ture purchased care from pri-vate providers, and improve theskill sets of WRNMMC staff tobetter support the warfighters.

“Everything we do has torelate to increased readiness,”Prince added. “That is the over-all Military Health System’sgoal.”

Efforts by the Readiness pil-lar team to improve readinessof the WRNMMC staff includeproviding training for the Ex-

pert Field Medical Badge;improving access to care forbeneficiaries “to facilitate sus-tainment of wartime skills andcontinuously infuse additionalhands-on and classroom train-ing for medics, corpsmen andall skill-type providers”; pro-viding overview of the mostcommon Navy Warfare/Quali-fication insignia; providingfamiliarization with variouscare environments, such asaboard ship or at combat sup-port hospitals; bettering pre-deployment checklists proce-dures; and offering small armsfamiliarization and weaponsmanagement.

In addition, Prince addedthe Readiness pillar teamis focused on updating theWRNMMC Emergency Man-agement Plan, publishing anannual training calendar forexercises, and conducting quar-terly recall drills.

He encouraged individualsto be ready for deployments,and to help in this effort, a“one-stop” location is being es-tablished in the hospital so ser-vice members can make suretheir health assessments, den-tal and immunization require-ments are up to date.

The next town hall meetingsfor WRNMMC are April 14 inMemorial Auditorium at 7 a.m.,noon and 3:30 p.m.

Leadership Rolls Out Pillars of Medical Center’s Strategic Plan

Chief Petty Officers,On April 1st, we will cel-

ebrate 122 years of excellence.One thing that CPOs havealways excelled at, despitethe challenges, is our abilityto recognize and implementchange.

If I could coin one word forthis year’s birthday theme,it would be ‘progress.’ OurNavy is 239 years old - couldyou imagine where our Navywould be without progress?

We went from wind-pow-ered sails to coal-poweredsteam. Now we sail under nu-clear power. Our aircraft havegone from propeller power tojet power. We went from CPOInitiation to Transition to In-duction and now CPO 365.

Without change, there is noprogress. Change is not always

easy, but that’s OK, becausehard is what we do.

George Washington oncesaid, “The harder the conflict,the greater the triumph.”

As CPOs, we have the re-sponsibility to ensure ourNavy continues to progress -we owe this to our Nation, ourNavy and our people.

Chiefs, I can’t begin to tellyou how proud I am of you.I’ve had the opportunity to bea member of our CPO Mess fortwo decades, and I can tell youtoday with great confidencethat our CPO Mess has neverbeen better. You should feelgood about who you are, whatyou represent, and your abilityto lead our Sailors.

Thank you from the bottomof my heart for 122 years ofexcellence.

US Navy CPOs Celebrate 122nd BirthdayA Message from Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Stevens

U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Martin L. Carey

Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Mike Stevens visits with Sailorsassigned to Naval Support Activity Mid-South before speaking at the khaki ballSept. 19, 2014. During his visit, Stevens discussed the enlisted detailing process,toured command spaces, and was the guest speaker at the khaki ball.


MWR, NEX Host Eggstravaganza 2015

U.S. Navy Photos by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Hank Gettys

More than 350 personnel and their children participated in Naval Support Activity Bethes-da’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) Eggstravaganza event at the Navy Exchange(NEX) parking lot, March 28. The event featured two egg hunts, along with a variety ofcarnival games and activities, and allowed patrons the opportunity to spend quality familytime together. It also gave volunteers from local commands an opportunity to serve thecommunity.

Washington Nationals Mascots Visit Bethesda USO Warrior and Family CenterMascots from Ma-jor League Base-ball’s WashingtonNationals visitedthe United Ser-vice Organizations(USO) Warriorand Family Centerat Naval SupportActivity BethesdaMarch 27 to boostmorale as part ofthe team’s ‘10 Daysof Thanks’ cam-paign. Screech, theofficial team mas-cot, and Teddy,one of the ‘RacingPresident’ mas-cots, dropped byto help hand outpizza, joke aroundwith service mem-bers and pose forphotos.

U.S. Navy Photos by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Hank Gettys



staff writer

“People generally come tothe hospital on their worstdays, and being able to seethem through those roughtimes, receiving a simple thankyou and a smile, are the great-est rewards for me,” says ClintM. Lewis, a licensed practicalnurse on 4 East at Walter ReedNational Military Medical Cen-ter (WRNMMC).Lewis recently received that

reward and more when he waschosen as the January DAISYaward winner at WRNMMC.The WRNMMC nursing teamrecognizes one of their mem-bers monthly with the award,earned for providing “extraor-dinary” patient care. Morethan 1,500 health-care facili-ties in nine countries celebratetheir nursing team memberswith the DAISY award, estab-lished by the family of J. Pat-rick Barnes. Those earning thehonor receive a hand-craftedHealer’s Touch sculpturecarved in Zimbabwe, a DAISYcertificate and cinnamon bunsfor their unit.In 1999, Barnes was diag-

nosed with the auto-immunedisease, Idiopathic Thrombo-

cytopenia Purpura (ITP) at age33, and died shortly thereafter.Appreciative of the nursingcare Barnes received duringhis eight-week hospitalization,his family created the DAISYFoundation and Award for Ex-traordinary Nurses. DAISY isan acronym for Disease Attack-ing the Immune System.WRNMMC began recogniz-

ing its nurses with the DAI-SY award in February 2012,according to Joan Loepker-Duncan, a cardiology serviceclinical nurse who serves onthe award selection committeeand helped to bring the recog-nition from the former WalterReed Army Medical Center(WRAMC) to WRNMMC whenit integrated with the formerNational Naval Medical Center(NNMC). She explained thatpatients, their family membersand fellow medical center staff-ers can nominate members ofthe WRNMMC nursing teamfor the DAISY award.For the January DAISY

award, Loepker-Duncan saidthe award committee received72 nominations, “an all-timehigh.” A patient, who wishes toremain anonymous, nominatedLewis for the award.“The committee found this

nomination outstanding,” Lo-

epker-Duncan explained. “Thepatient had certainly receivedcare from many nursing teammembers over the past sixmonths [at WRNMMC], and yetsingled out this one nurse forexcellence.”In nominating Lewis for the

award, the patient stated, “Ihave found all of the staff com-mitted, compassionate, andprofessional. However, thisteam member has been espe-cially committed to team ‘Me’with compassion, knowledge-able advice on optional thera-pies and tenacity to get chang-es in therapy enacted quickly.“I have been blessed that

this nurse was assigned to mefor three days following a majorsurgery and I’m certain [he] isthe reason for my speedy recov-ery,” the patient added.Army Maj. Ruby J. Thomas,

service chief of 4 East, calledLewis “outstanding and com-passionate, as well as profes-sional. Every patient he hastaken care of has nothing butgreat things to say about hiscare. He is truly the epitomeof what [WRNMMC] Director[Brig. Gen. Jeffrey B. Clark]would like the patient experi-ence to be. [Lewis is] a team

4 East Nurse Earns DAISY Award

Photo by Bernard S. Little

Clint M. Lewis, a licensed practical nurse on 4 Eastat Walter Reed Bethesda (WRB) demonstrates howto perform an ultrasound as one of his many nursingduties. He recently earned the DAISY Award for Ex-traordinary Nursing Care at WRB.


staff writer

Walter Reed NationalMilitary Medical Center(WRNMMC) celebrated Irish-American Heritage Month witha performance by young danc-ers from the Hurley School ofIrish Dance, along with foodand cake during a program inthe America Building, March26.The medical center’s Multi-

Cultural Committee sponsoredthe celebration, as they do withmany of the ethnic and culturalobservances on Naval SupportActivity Bethesda (NSAB). Theprograms the committee co-ordinates are held to enhancecultural awareness and un-derstanding of the diversity atWRNMMC, NSAB and its ten-ant commands, as well as fos-ter esprit de corps, according toHospital Corpsman 2nd ClassBuddhika Abeyratne, the com-mittee’s president.Since 1991, U.S. presi-

dents have proclaimed March

as Irish-American HeritageMonth to recognize the contri-butions Irish immigrants andtheir descendants have madein forming America. The obser-vance coincides with the Irishnational holiday of Saint Pat-rick’s Day, celebrated aroundthe world on March 17 to

honor the patron saint of Ire-land credited with introducingChristianity to the country.March 17 is the date recognizedwhen Saint Patrick died duringthe 5th century.In his 2015 proclamation

for Irish-American HeritageMonth, President Barack

Obama stated, “The vibrantculture and rich heritage of theIrish people shaped many ofthe earliest chapters of Amer-ica’s story. Our common valuesand shared vision for the futurelaid the foundation for an eter-nal friendship between Irelandand the United States, and to-

day, daughters and sons of Erincontinue to enrich our Nation.This month, we reaffirm thebonds of affection between ourtwo great countries, and wehonor the courage and perse-verance of the Irish-Americancommunity.”Nine signers of the Decla-

ration of Independence, morethan 20 of George Washington’sgenerals, America’s first com-missioned naval officer, over190,000 Irish-born Americanswho fought in the Civil War,journalist Nellie Bly, teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe,retired astronaut and AirForce Col. Eileen Collins, morethan 250 Medal of Honor re-cipients, and more than 20U.S. presidents are of Irish de-scent, according to the websiteirishamericanheritagemonth.com.Dancers from the Hurley

School dressed in a variety ofbrightly colored outfits andperformed a number of well-synchronized and energetic

Walter Reed Bethesda Celebrates Irish-American Heritage Month

Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Christopher Krucke

Dancers from the Hurley School of Irish Dance perform during the Irish-Ameri-can Heritage Month celebration at Walter Reed National Military Medical CenterMarch 26.

See IRISH page 6

See NURSE page 6

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Editorial Reporter/PhotojournalistComprint Military Publications has an immediate opening for afull-time Reporter/Photojournalist in its Dahlgren, Virginia office. News writingbackground, interviewing individuals for stories, AP style knowledge, anddigital camera familiarity important. College degree in journalism preferred.Familiarity with military a plus. E-mail resume, 3 writing samples that havenot been edited and salary requirements to: [email protected].

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player, an exceptional clinician and agreat person.”

Assistant Service Chief of 4 EastArmy 1st Lt. Paul Willms also de-scribes Lewis as an outstandingnurse. “We are lucky to have him onour team,” the lieutenant added.

Lewis, a native of Bishopville, S.C.,says his team on 4 East is “awesomeand always willing to lend a hand.

“I really enjoy helping others,”Lewis continued. “After being a com-bat medic for several years, I wantedto learn more about the human body,which really fascinates me,” he ex-plained about furthering his educa-tion to become a licensed practicalnurse nearly six years ago.

He first worked at WRAMCand moved with the integration to

WRNMMC. “I was on active duty atthe time, having been assigned toWRAMC in 2009.”

Concerning his recent accolades asa DAISY winner, Lewis says, “I’m re-ally not a center-stage person, so thisis somewhat of a challenge for me. Icame here to provide care to the bestof my abilities to our nation’s heroesand their families, and I’m really notlooking for any recognition, althoughI am thankful for programs like [DAI-SY]. Nursing can be challenging anddemanding and [DAISY] remindsnurses that our patients are thankfulfor the care and compassion we pro-vide.

“I would like to thank [Director ofNursing Services] Col. Ray Antoineand the nursing leadership who tooktime out of their busy schedules tocome and present this award to me,and thank the family of J. PatrickBarnes for making his legacy that ofan appreciation for nurses,” Lewisadded.

NURSEContinued from pg. 5

routines to traditional Irish music forthe WRNMMC community last weekduring the observance. The dancers per-formed reel and jig Irish dance styles.

Following the dancers, members ofthe Multi-Cultural Committee served at-tendees traditional Irish dishes, includ-ing Shepherd’s pie and bread pudding.

“TheMulti-Cultural Committee workshard to put these events together, and Iwould like to thank each member for hisand her contribution,” Abeyratne stated.

Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Heath-er Toptsidis, assistant leading petty of-fice for Executive Medicine, works on thecommittee and said she feels the eventsboost morale.

“[They] give people the opportunity toget away from where they work, relax,see something that they may not normal-ly get to experience, get food, as well assee leadership and others from aroundthe command,” Troptsidis said.

“We would like more people to be in-volved with the Multi-Cultural Com-mittee,” Toptsidis continued. “We havemeetings every Thursday at 11 a.m. inthe Pastoral Care Conference Room. Thewhole purpose of the [committee] is sopeople can learn and share [information]about other ethnicities and backgroundsthey might not otherwise be exposed to,”she added.

The committee’s next scheduled activ-ity is a tour of the Holocaust Museumin Washington, D.C. in observance ofthe Day of Remembrance on April 30.For more information, contact HM2Travis Silvey at 301-295-4270 or [email protected].

IRISHContinued from pg. 5

Navy Hospital CorpsmanThong Nguy-en, who helped evaluate the students’performance during the active shooterscenario, agreed with that sentiment.

“It shows the students what the hos-pital corpsmen, the guys like me and allthe combat medics, what we go throughwhen we’re out there, because the doc-tors rarely ever see it so they could ac-

tually relate with us,” Thong said.Robert Vocke, a research scientist

who volunteered to help teach the one-rope bridge course and improvisationtechniques, said the students did a goodjob thinking outside the box.

“I don’t think we’re trying to teach‘This is the way you do it, there’s onlyone way,’” he said. “We’re trying to getthem to realize where the safety pointsare, where the critical points are, and toapply those in a logical way and use theentire memory of the group.”

STUDENTSContinued from pg. 1

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Corpsman Recognized for Life Saving Efforts

U.S. Navy photo by Karen Wolfe Hendrix

Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Ian McClanahan, right, received theNavy and Marine Corps Lifesaving Medal on Wednesday, March18 at the Semper Fidelis Memorial Chapel, National Museum ofthe Marine Corps, Quantico, Va. Marine Col. Kenneth M. DeTreux,commanding officer of the 8th Marine Regiment at Camp Lejeune,N.C., presented the Navy and Marine Corps’ highest peacetimeaward for heroism on the second anniversary of McClanahan be-ing injured during a training exercise. McClanahan cleared his ownairway and began treating other injured Sailors and Marines. Herefused medical help so medics could treat others more seriouslyinjured. The medal is awarded to any person who, while serving inany capacity with the U.S. Navy or the U.S. Marine Corps, distin-guishes himself by heroism not involving actual conflict with theenemy, for acts of lifesaving or attempted lifesaving, at the risk ofone’s own life. McClanahan is attached to Walter Reed NationalMilitary Medical Center and the Navy Wounded Warrior-Safe Har-bor program, both located in Bethesda, Md.

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2014 Mercedes-Benz ML 350 Sport Utility


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