Posted on 06/15/2007 1:35:18 PM PDT by devane617
The U.S. Navy hospital ship Comfort will be sailing off Florida waters on Sunday en route to Latin America and the Caribbean -- and The Miami Herald will be on board for a first report on the mission.
President Bush has ordered the ship, with a mixed 500-plus military and civilian crew and staff, to spend three months on a 12-nation tour as a goodwill gesture.
The Baltimore-based ship left port in Norfolk, Va., on Friday morning in what the Pentagon's U.S. Southern Command is calling ``its first-ever, large-scale humanitarian assistance deployment to Central America, South America and the Caribbean.''
Southcom estimates that during the tour, which coincides with the Atlantic hurricane season, medical and dental teams on board the ship will collaborate with foreign medical staff to ``provide medical care to an estimated 85,000 patients from communities with limited healthcare access.''
Comfort is a former tanker as lengthy as three football fields, equipped with a helicopter landing pad and the ability to take on patients from the sea as well. On this mission, it is equipped with two operating rooms, a 50-bed hospital ward and a host of scanning, laboratory and analysis equipment.
Stops will include Belize, Guatemala, Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and Suriname.
A Miami Herald team anticipates posting a news update and web-video at www.miamiherald.com Sunday evening -- following up with a full news report in Monday morning's newspaper.
Meantime, to read more about Comfort, see http://www.comfort.navy.mil
Must be trying to take some pressure off the emergency rooms in LA, Chicago, Miami and NY.
EVERYTHING ISN'T ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION!
Gawd, I'm sick of this, I know it's a big issue but it ain't everything.
Thought you’d find this fun, with the lack of information about what happens in the more US-friendly latin nations: In Honduras, the airport at the capital is named after their nations’ great hero: I’ve flown out of the Oliver North International Airport only once, but I found the whole place charming simply ‘cus of the name.
Successfully saving a whole nation from a marxist totalitarian insurgency didn’t help ‘ol Ollie up here, however.
I believe the USS Hope also did this for years.
Sure hope they are armed against the pirates.
What a sweet story - thanks for telling it, Capt. P. I’m glad Ollie gets that kind of kudos from the grateful and remembering Central Americans, it’s such sweet news.
Ran an independent surgery clinic for a number of years in South America.
Where we were located the populace had a Hillary Clinton “It Takes A Village” type of Social Security system for medical somewhat like the United States.
The wealthy always flew to Florida, London or Paris for their medical care.
Problem was those so poor to have paid nothing into the system was left with out ability to seek the free medical help.
The hospitals for the poor were closed often because the politicians who ran the institutions stole or misappropriated funds, drugs or medical equipment.
For many years in one large hospital the name brand drugs bought for the hospital were sold to local discount pharmacies and replaced with sugar pill type counterfeits.
Imagine going to the emergency room and having to bring your own sheet and pillow for the ER bed if one was available.
If medicine was prescribed for pain or other causes a loved one would have to go and purchase the items at a local pharmacy.
Often times the drugs they purchased was originally for the hospital pharmacy with barren shelves.
After waiting for hours to get into the Emergency Room poor patients had to wait even long periods to see any hospital personnel much less an overworked doctor.
Hospital personnel upset because bus and taxi drivers made as much or more than staff doctors and nurses who worked 70 hour weeks for wages that averaged around $480 a month.
Every time I hear the Socialist of America talk about free medical care I think back to those days in South America.
I realize what the Democrats propose to be run by the government will not work just as it dosen’t in Canada or most South American countries.
We have given foreign aid for sixty years. There are both sound humanitarian reasons and sound geopolitical reasons for it. This is a particularly good and efficient example of foreign aid. If you’re against helping other people as long as there are needy people in this country, you simply don’t understand the world we live in. There is far more available to needy people in this country than there is in the countries we’re helping with this mission. The fact that some of them have socialist governments isn’t a factor to take into account. We’re providing this assistance directly, not through these governments.
People like you, who not only can’t think straight, but sound utterly callous toward the rest of the world, give conservatives a bad name.
Well, you're not disagreeing with me. I concur 100% and will also add that these missions ARE a Godsend to these people and I can't for the life of me understand the criticism.
As a side note, I have been to Honduras many times and my physician brother-in-law here in Michigan is from Honduras.
He had two nephews (both have died in the past 3 years) who were both doctors in Honduras and one of the requirements following graduation from medical school is that you have a 2 year obligation to the country to perform medical services for whatever location you are sent to. Mario was sent to a wee village along the El Salvador border and the photos he provided of the conditions there you would never believe. Without that forced "community work" those people would never see a doctor in their lifetimes............And the same holds true for this humanitarian medical ship.
In what way? Indigent and poor people already have free access to the hospitals in those communities. We're providing medical care to many peoples who don't have access to ANY medical facilities whatsoever and in a lot of cases may even be the last time they ever have contact with a qualified physician..........I don't begrudge the recipients of this mission a thing.
They’ll name the first thunderstorm en route.
Oh, wait. El Jefe Boosh is in command....never mind.
Bite your tongue!! And pray the answer is no...
Why are you so upsent about news of this ship today considering the fact that its been a hospital ship since 1987 performing missions all over the world and other such ships have been in existence since 1949..........
This is nothing more than an update on old, old news..........
Yes, well so are some of you 'guys/gals'. Because it appears the cabal in Washington DC is as great an enemy. They are certainly not working for the preservation of this republic.
Amen. Just seen a story where a famous doctor left a high priced practice to go out on the streets and give medicine and health care to kids. I know plenty of people who are having a very hard time now.Does anybody really give a damn?
Once again, Bush, operating as though he is King.
Maybe he really meant that remark that was about “Dictators are bad, unless he is the dictator”.
Uh, no one buys that crap anymore. Islamofascists and terrorists love the new amnesty bill.
Bush is in this with the Democrats so your threat is moot.
We will keep it up, we do not buy propaganda.
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