Military leaders from Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Soldiers, officers, friends, staff and faculty of the US Army Medical Department Center and School, US Army Health Readiness Center of Excellence, saw history in the making when an uncasing ceremony on July 2 at the US Army Medical Department Museum Amphitheater officially established the Academy Brigade (Provisional), the Headquarters and Support Company (Provisional), and its subordinate units.
Major General Steve Jones, commanding general, AMEDDC&S, HRCoE, and host for the ceremony said, "Today's ceremony marks another milestone in our transformation in support of Force 2025."
"The first was our designation as the United States Army Health Readiness Center of Excellence, and there are many milestones yet to come as we demonstrate our commitment to providing the best military in the world with the best medical support possible," continued Jones.
On Feb. 19 of this year, Headquarters, Department of the Army, designated the AMEDDC&S as the Army's Health Readiness Center of Excellence.
As an Army Health Readiness CoE, the AMEDD Center and School will play an expanded role supporting the Army to lead the design, integration, education, and training of new and innovative approaches to health and the Army Health System.
The designation enables the command to focus on medical capability development and integration functions and serve the Army as a single agency with which to coordinate the medical and health needs of Soldiers and their Families.
The Health Readiness Center of Excellence also establishes operational conditions for the command to establish a university model and degree granting authority for the AMEDDC&S as an academic institution.
The AMEDDC&S reorganized to enhance mission command, improve functional alignment, fully implement the Army Health Readiness Center of Excellence, and set the conditions for becoming a degree-granting institution.
Restructuring the AMEDDC&S, HRCoE, into two training brigades with cadre, faculty and students assigned to the same organization will enhance mission command and improve functional alignment for the brigades, each of which will have responsibility for the execution of training and education, as well as quality of life and immersion into the Army Profession. It will also create a focus for concept, requirements, and doctrinal development in a Capability Development and Integration Directorate analogous to other CoEs.
Jones talked about ongoing conflicts since September 11, 2011.
He said, "Conflicts in the future, like those in the past, will ultimately be resolved on land. They will be won with the blood of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines who make up our Joint Force. Those warfighters will fight more effectively because they know Army Medicine is present on the battlefield with them, and they will take comfort knowing that we are also caring for their families back home."
He said, "The Academy Brigade will play a critical role in the transformation of Army Medicine to meet these challenges. It will train medical leaders with new ideas, who can think critically, inspire Soldiers, instill discipline, and develop the character that makes our Army the best in the world."
Jones said the Academy Brigade is being established to improve the exercise of mission command within the AMEDDC&S, HRCoE, and will better align authority and responsibility as cadre, faculty and students will be assigned within the same organization and chain of command.
The Headquarters and Support Company (Provisional) is aligned under AMEDDC&S, HRCoE, and is under the command of Maj. Rory Walley and 1st Sgt. John Case.
Academy Brigade (Provisional) is under the command of Col. William Drennon, Sgt. Maj. Larry Lipsey as the unit Command Sergeant Major, and Lt. Col. Patrick Zenk as the brigade executive officer, and consists of a headquarters detachment under the Academy Brigade and two battalions; the Academy Battalion (Provisional), with a headquarters detachment, three companies, and the US Army School of Aviation Medicine, and the 187th Medical Battalion with a headquarters detachment, three companies and the AMEDD Student Detachment.
The 32nd Medical Brigade is under the command of Col. Jack Davis and Command Sgt. Maj. David Franco and consists of one headquarters detachment, two battalions - the 232nd Medical Battalion with a headquarters company and seven companies, the 264th Medical Battalion with a headquarters detachment and four companies, and includes the AMEDD Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the AMEDD Board, and the AMEDD Personnel Proponent Directorate.
The Army Health Readiness CoE under the US Army Medical Command mission command maintains a focus on combat casualty care and aligns with Training and Doctrine Command Centers of Excellence in terms of the authority and responsibility for developing medical readiness and health concepts, identifying medical readiness and health capability gaps, and defining and refining future Soldier medical and health requirements established by TRADOC.
The CoE structure increases collaboration across CoEs, other organizations, programs, and the generating force to improve support to the operating force. It embraces best practices and initiatives that improve efficiency and effectiveness of the Army and other Service partners overall. Its common structure across all CoEs improves the ability of external agencies to communicate with CoE subordinate elements. Where integrated staffs are realized and common instruction shared, manpower requirements are decreased and greater synergy is gained between staffs and schools.
The Army HRCoE supports the Army Campaign Plan and the Army Medicine 2020 Campaign Plan by providing The Surgeon General a mission command structure from which to lead the design, integration, and training of new and innovative approaches to health and the Army Health System which, in turn, enable a ready, resilient force of Soldiers, Families, and Communities for the Army.
The Army HRCoE better focuses the Army on improving the readiness of the force by achieving healthy outcomes, promoting sleep, activity, and nutrition as a performance triad and reducing the number of medically non-ready Soldiers.
The HRCoE maintains a focus on combat casualty care and aligns with other TRADOC CoEs in terms of the authority and responsibility for developing medical/health concepts, identifying medical/health capability gaps, and refining future health readiness requirements based on Soldier capability needs established by TRADOC.
Jones welcomed Drennon who most recently served as the Chief of the Leader Training Center at the AMEDDC&S, HRCoE.
Jones said, "He successfully commanded a medical evacuation battalion and a combat support hospital and served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. With his experience and proven performance, he was the obvious selection as the brigade commander."
Jones also talked highly of Lipsey. Lipsey is coming from the Medical Capabilities Integration Center, AMEDDC&S, HRCoE. He has served both as an instructor, a First Sergeant and a combat tour as the Garrison Sergeant Major at Walter Reed.
Spouses Ann Drennon and Wanda Lipsey received a bouquet of yellow flowers during the ceremony welcoming them to the AMEDDC&S, HRCoE.
The colors and guidons presented during the ceremony serve as a temporary rally point and symbol of unity and esprit de corps for the soldiers serving in these units. Upon approval of permanent orders and official unit designations by Headquarters Department of the Army, these units will receive the history, lineage and honors approved for their units by the Center of Military History.
To the Soldiers and leaders of the Academy Brigade, Drennon said, "We just crossed the line of departure and it is time for us to assume our new mission and move forward with the utmost professionalism and discipline. Thank you for accepting the challenge to join our new team. You have my confidence and loyalty, and together we will overcome all challenges, accomplish all missions, and grow strong more each day."
Related Links:
AMEDD Center and School, Health Readiness Center of Excellence
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