REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. -- One of the newest members of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command plans to help keep those serving in the command healthy.
Col. Kevin P. Michaels, USASMDC/ARSTRAT command surgeon, arrived at the command May 31. He said his mission is to promote, sustain and enhance Soldier health and performance across the command.
"I look forward to building the command surgeon's office to meet the needs of the families, Soldiers and civilians of the Space and Missile Defense Command," Michaels said. "I am new to this position, but right now my focus is on the readiness of the Soldiers and deployable civilians so they can meet their missions as well as take care of their families in coordinating health care for them at our geographically dispersed locations."
The command surgeon's goals are to: improve SMDC's medical readiness posture, ensure authorized beneficiaries access to timely medical care, instill a prevention and safety mindset as a cornerstone to force/employee protection, and to continuously improve and strengthen the medical team individually, collectively and corporately.
"Some of my goals are to ensure the Soldiers are fit and ready to meet and complete their mission from a medical readiness standpoint, ensure their periodical health assessments are done when they return home, or attend to the needs of their families," Michaels said.
The vision of the command surgeon is to have his office become a premiere, unified and empowered medical team serving as a force multiplier and enabling mission accomplishment through focused and value-added services.
Michaels, who arrived from Army Human Resources Command based at Fort Knox, Ky., served at Fox Army Health Center on Redstone Arsenal as the deputy commander for clinical services. As a person who is familiar with Redstone Arsenal, Michaels said he was glad to be home and looked forward to serving in SMDC.
"I am really happy to be here and I look forward to working with everyone," Michaels said. "I will be making my way through everyone's office to see what they do and learn how I can better support them. I look forward to working with this great team."
As command surgeon, Michaels will be traveling to various SMDC sites and spending time with Soldiers, civilians, contractors and family members to learn what he can do for them as he serves alongside them.
"I will be traveling to visit our troops downrange in Alaska, the Kwajalein Islands, Colorado, Maryland, Europe and other places I need to get involved with," Michaels said. "There are a lot of places to go and a lot of faces to know, and I am looking forward to seeing them all."
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