Egypt, US conduct military nursing exchange

SAN ANTONIO - The United States and Egypt conducted a military to military nursing exchange at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, March 23-27.

The U.S. Army Central International Military Affairs team arranged the first-of-its-kind exchange between the Egyptian Training Authority and the U.S. Army Medical Department Center and School to address a growing need in the Egyptian military medical community for critical care of both military and civilian patients.

"The challenge we face is not one of manpower, but rather the task of training this nursing workforce in both knowledge and technology to elevate the level of care," said Brig. Gen. Hana'a Mahmoud Mohamed Abdelwahed, the director of the Egyptian Military Nursing Training Academy.

AMDCS is the largest medical education and training campus in the world; producing nearly 35,000 medical profession graduates every year.

"Tremendous amounts of ongoing research, from graduate programs to lessons learned from the field, come together here to modernize the battlefield of tomorrow," explained Gregg Stevens, deputy to the commanding general. "Basic curriculum is ever-changing and reviewed every year to take those changes and write it into the curriculum."

Hana'a and her team of medical specialists met with multiple department chairs and their staff during the weeklong visit to the campus. Discussions ranged from budgeting and curriculum to the implementation and continuing education of military care providers.

In addition to exploring on-base facilities, the delegation attended class at the University of the Incarnate Word School of Nursing and accompanied UIC professor, Dr. Michael Moon, during advanced student clinicals at the Southwest Texas Methodist Hospital to observe the level of education and training preceding military service.

To conclude the visit, Col. Denise Hopkins-Chadwick, dean of the International Military Student Office, and her deputy, Oscar Ramos-Rivera, met with the Egyptian delegation to discuss the way forward for future theater security cooperation events between the two countries.

"Through partnership, we will return and follow through on the future of this new cooperative endeavor," pledged Hana'a.

Other highlights during the visit include a personal tour of the U.S. Army Medical Museum, an invitation to the International Military Student Reception hosted by Maj. Gen. Steve Jones, AMDCS commanding general and a visit to the Alamo.