Thursday, 16 August 2007

NZ Navy Medics Assist United States Navy In Papua New Guinea

Seven Royal New Zealand Navy medical personnel joined a United States Navy-led humanitarian mission in the Pacific this month. Named “Pacific Partnership 2007”, the mission aims to provide humanitarian assistance throughout South East Asia and the South Pacific.

Onboard the US Navy Multi-role amphibious ship USN PELELIU (40000 tonnes and nearly 900ft long), the NZ Navy Medical Team joined the mission for a three and a half week deployment as part of a multi-national military and non-governmental medical, dental and construction team.

The NZ Navy Medical Team, along with a huge US medical, surgical, dental, optometric, engineering and nursing component, are directly responsible for clinics in the Madang, Josephstall, Ileg, Bunabun and Miak areas of Papua New Guinea. There are four different sections to the mission: MEDCAP - medical aid and seeing patients; VETCAP - veterinarian assistance; DENCAP - dental care; and ENCAP - assisting with engineering projects.

Alongside Paediatricians, Dentists, Ophthalmologists, General Surgeons and Cardiologists from the US, NZ Navy Surgeon Commander John Duncan from Hamilton is one of the primary care doctors of MEDCAP.

“The NZ Navy Medics will be primarily focused on vaccinations, though a couple of the medics will be assisting with the VETCAPS and other Environmental Health activities,“ says Dr Duncan.

“Vaccinations are very important in this area and whilst there is a good vaccination program running, the level of full immunisation is low. Twenty percent of children are not immunised, and of the immunised children, most have not fully completed their vaccination course. We will be vaccinating as part of the national vaccination program, giving boosters that are due (or overdue), and initiating vaccination in unvaccinated people. Of course we will be filling out their vaccination booklets and then organising the follow up vaccinations with the local health infrastructure,” he continues.

“As there is still a lot of tetanus and other diseases in Papua New Guinea that cause significant morbidity and mortality, vaccinations offer a huge and ongoing benefit to the local population. For this trip there will be huge amounts of vaccinations given (not solely in Papua New Guinea) and this does give an idea as to the scope of the vaccination program we are involved in”, he says.

“We are also dealing with fungal infections, osteoarthritis and malnutrition in the local population. It was good to be able to come to an area where we could help. Malaria is common here, and many of the locals had lost children to malaria. I met a mother who lost two of her three children the previous year to malaria and another who had just lost twins. It is very, very sad and Papua New Guinea has one of the highest childhood death rates in the world.”

To illustrate the scope of this medical and humanitarian operation, as well as the medical clinics, the NZ Navy Medical Team are assisting with both the Public and the Environmental Health Officers involved in projects such as clean water and environmental health issues. There are clinics on the outer islands to identify people who are suitable for surgery and people on the ground ready to try and pre-arrange this. The radio advertising has been extensive and the queues of people lining up for medical treatment are huge.

Summing up after a particularly busy three day vaccination programme in Josephstall, NZ Navy Leading Medic Tracey Richdale, from Wanganui, says, “I feel very proud to be given the opportunity to work with a highly trained team of professionals from many different nations. Together our efforts in Papua New Guinea would have helped the locals out tremendously and perhaps even saved lives”.

Navy Warrant Officer Medic Lee Matravers, from Whangaparoa, said, “Our mission is to basically see how the U.S. Navy operates and join the other nations on this mission to see where we can help out. Joining with other nations sends a message quite loud to the rest of the world that we can work as a team to achieve something that’s good.”

The NZ Navy Medical Team is expected back in New Zealand in late August.

ENDS

The NZ Navy Medic Team - Surgeon Commander John Duncan (Hamilton), Warrant Officer Medic Lee Matravers (Whangapaoroa), Leading Medic Tracey Richdale (Wanganui), Leading Medic Natasha Gill (Northcote), Able Medic Andrea Gooch (Stratford), Able Medic Melanie Bainbridge (Levin) and Able Medic Toni Simmonds (Masterton)

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