Accompanied by the Texas sweltering heat, the musical notes of the First Cavalry Division Band and the change of command pageantry on Fort Hood's Sadowski Field, the commander of Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center (CRDAMC) inspected his troops for the last time, thanking them afterwards for "being the best medical team in the Army."
"My name is Thompson, and I care for Phantom Warriors," said Col. Mark Thompson, after relinquishing command to Col. David Gibson during the July 7 change of command ceremony.
During his two-year command caring for Phantom Warriors, Thompson directed the mid-term transition to the new $540 million dollar replacement hospital, developed partnerships within the community and Central Texas organizations, optimized patient care and advanced the "readiness of all Soldiers within the III Corps footprint." Impossible achievements, he said, that were made possible because of the CRDAMC Team.
In paraphrasing a quote by St. Francis of Assisi, Thompson thanked the CRDAMC team for doing "what was necessary, then doing what is possible and then doing the impossible."
"I can think of no better quote to describe the journey that we, as a command, have ventured on over these past two years. Our list of accomplishments is long and includes every facet of our mission," he said, adding that there were those who had doubts about the outcome of some of the things on that list. "Yet, we did the impossible, together as a team."
Thompson then cited the new hospital and its subsequent Joint Commission inspection as being the highlight of his time as CRDAMC commander.
"We executed a flawless hospital move with an equally flawless follow on Joint Commission inspection," he said. "That was pretty incredible and for that, we, as a team, can all be very proud. It is an accomplishment no one else has done before us and not likely to be done after us."
Thompson, who will next serve as command surgeon for the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command at Fort Eustis, Va., closed out his remarks by thanking everyone for their "incredible efforts in allowing CRDAMC to deliver the finest care in the best facility in Army Medicine."
Guest speaker and reviewing office for the ceremony was Maj. Gen. Thomas Tempel, commanding general for Army Medicine's Regional Health Command-Central (RHC-C) and chief of Army Medicine's Dental Corps.
Tempel praised Thompson for his leadership and for going the extra mile with an "unwavering eye toward improving readiness, patient outcomes and the patient experience."
"In this new facility, under the very successful leadership of Col. Mark Thompson, CRDAMC has undergone a strategic shift in the delivery of medicine in the Central Texas region," said the RHC-C commanding general, citing CRDAMC's continued medical excellence in caring for patients. "You and the staff at Darnall have elevated the level of care here to an unprecedented standard."
Major General Tempel also complimented Colonel Thompson's success in building partnerships.
"Colonel Thompson's accomplishments here come down to the mastery of one essential leadership trait: The ability to build relationships," he said, specifically addressing how this has improved readiness and the level of care for all Soldiers within the Fort Hood footprint.
One of those initiatives, Tempel said, was partnering with the First Cavalry Division to stand up a sports medicine clinic for the early treatment of common joint and overuse injuries to reduce recovery time. This, he said, has greatly improved medical readiness for Fort Hood Soldiers.
"This focus on Soldier readiness led to the number of Soldiers in a non-deployable status to fall to less than two percent throughout Fort Hood and a rate of less than one percent at CRDAMC," he said."
Tempel also praised Thompson's most recent efforts in establishing a partnership with Texas A&M and Central Texas College that will increase educational access to CRDAMC's simulation lab.
"All of these initiatives, all of these partnerships, ensure that when the combat and support units who call Fort Hood home deploy, they are medically ready no matter where in the world they go," he said.
Tempel then welcomed Colonel Gibson who comes to CRDAMC following a tour as chief of staff for Army Medical Department Center and School and the Training Center of Excellence in San Antonio.
"I know you will champion readiness and promote and oversee this great command, preparing the Soldiers you lead to maintain their status as a premier expeditionary and globally integrated medical force," Major General Tempel said. "Under your leadership, I am confident the CRDAMC healthcare team will continue to excel in its role as a key partner with the area medical institutions, III Corps and the entire Military Health System in support of our Soldiers and their Families."
Addressing his new command, Colonel Gibson told the crowd that changes of command are more about the "continuity of units and organization than the transition from one commander to another."
"I know the CRDAMC team of teams who execute the daily mission sets will continue to demonstrate their unwavering excellence," he said adding that the command remains focused on readiness, building community partnerships, promoting high-quality healthcare and ensuring exceptional patient experiences. "We, at CRDAMC, with the continued support of our partners throughout the greater Fort Hood community, will retain an unwavering commitment on maintaining and improving the medical readiness of our force and ensuring a ready medical force. This mission is vital to enable Army readiness."
Before his commissioning in the early 1990s, Gibson served in the Army as an enlisted infantryman. He holds multiple graduate degrees, including a master's in Public Administration, Murray State University in Kentucky; master degrees in Real Estate and Construction Management, as well as in Business Administration and Finance, University of Denver in Colorado; and a master's in National Security and Resource Strategy from the Eisenhower School, National Defense University in Washington, D.C., where he was a distinguished graduate.
He is a recipient of The Surgeon General's "A" Designator for career academic accomplishments and a member of the Order of the Military Medical Merit.
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