Airmen making a difference in South Africa

  • Published
  • By Capt. Heather Healy
  • MedFlag Public Affairs
DITHOLO, South Africa (AFPN) --  MedFlag participants are focusing on bringing medical and civic assistance to six clinics surrounding nearby Hoedspruit Air Base.

“We keep busy,” said Capt. Molly O’Brien, a 48th Medical Group dentist from Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England. “We’re seeing (about) 60 patients a day, mostly for [tooth] extractions.”

Airmen have treated locals and made long-lasting improvements to clinic facilities. For many of them, the impact of their work is immediate; but for some Airmen who have jobs that keep them on base, it may be difficult to understand their contributions to the front lines.

To help these Airmen see who and what they are supporting, base leaders offer space-available seats on helicopters that fly essential people to the clinics

When a helicopter recently landed in a local field near Ngwaabe village, smiling and waving children rushed to the gates and pressed their faces into the metal to get a closer look at the helicopter and its passengers.

“I’m so glad I came here,” said Airman Angelica Swann, of the 48th MDG logistics. “It changes you on the inside; I feel so lucky.”

About 60 miles from the main hospital, the Ngwaabe clinic and its two nurses serve a village of more than 80,000 people.

“We see 110 patients a day,” said Florah Matlala, head nurse for clinic.

The clinic staff sees everything from minor skin rashes to HIV-related illnesses such as tuberculosis, she said.

Military doctors said they have offered free medical care at the clinic to hundreds of people who cannot afford to see doctors in local hospitals.

When patients arrive at a clinic, they have their blood pressure, temperature and pulse taken and discuss their medical concerns through a translator.

“The doctors and translators work together to determine what’s wrong with the patient,” said 1st Lt. Shelley Metcalf, a 48th MDG registered nurse. (Courtesy of U.S. Air Forces in Europe News Service)