16.09.2016.
Analysis of Common Medical Engagement of MoD and SAF and ONG
At the Military Medical Academy, today, the analysis was carried out to present assessments and impressions about the common medical engagement of the members of the Ministry of Defence, Serbian Armed Forces and the Ohio National Guard, in the territory Pcinj administrative district. The meeting was attended by Colonel Ugljesa Jovicic, Head of the Military Health Department, Brigadier General Gregory Schnulo from the Ohio National Guard, and Colonel Prof. Dragan Dincic, Deputy Chief of the Military Medical Academy.Colonel Dr Jovicic thanked the participants in the medical engagement and said that they all together prepared well for this activity, and, as he assessed, their efforts paid off in the end.
Commander of this activity, Lieutenant Colonel Aleksandar Radunovic, spoke about the results of the medical engagement. He pointed out that during the fifteen days, medical teams examined about 1,900 patients at eight locations and performed 3,364 check-ups. The most burdened departments were departments for triage, ophthalmology and internal medicine. On the basis of the engagement, it could be concluded that the main problem was the low level of health education of patients (personal and dental health) – the largest number suffered from chronic diseases, but did not take medical treatment. Very difficult access to medical services for patients in this region has caused that half of the examined patients had never undergone ophthalmologic examination in their life, a large number of orthopaedic patients came with undiagnosed and untreated arthritis on big joints.
MMA Deputy Head, Professor Dincic, stressed the importance of the common action from the humanitarian aspect and said that discussions with the colleagues from the Ministry of Health Kogel and civilian medical services will follow in order to provide adequate medical assistance to these populations.
Coordinator of the whole activity, Colonel Miroslav Brocic, and team leaders of the Ohio National Guard and Angolan Armed Forces – colonels Kevin Edwards and Marlene Fonseca.Common Medical Engagement of the members of the Ministry of Defence, Serbian Armed Forces and the Ohio National Guard, which was the subject of the analysis, began on 6th September and lasted 15 days. It was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Defence, Military Health Department, Military Medical Academy, the Ohio National Guard, and, as observers, representatives of the Angolan armed forces. Common Medical Engagement included free health checks of inhabitants of eight villages remote from health care facilities in the towns of Presevo and Bujanovac. The teams consisted of general practitioners, paediatricians, gynaecologists, dermatologists, infectious diseases specialists, ophthalmologists and other specialists as needed, as well as dentists, along with veterinary and preventive medical teams that operated in the field. This joint action included 31 members of MoD and SAF, 25 members of the Ohio National Guard and three observers from Angola.
