Patrick Smock runs the Miami Marathon

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Paula Taylor of Task Force Bastogne NANGARHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan, Jan. 31, 2011 - After tossing and turning for most of the night, Army Maj. (Dr.) Patrick Smock finally rolled out of bed at 3:30 a.m. yesterday. He'd trained hard for four months, and the day finally had arrived for the 745th Forward Surgical Team orthopedic surgeon to run the 26.2-mile Miami Marathon -- thousands of miles from Florida amid the concrete barriers and concertina wire that line the perimeter of Forward Operating Base Fenty in eastern Afghanistan. Army Maj. (Dr.) Patrick Smock of Liberty Hill, Texas, runs the Miami Marathon satellite race at Forward Operating Base Fenty in eastern Afghanistan, Jan. 30, 2011. His brothers, also doctors, ran the Miami Marathon in Florida later that day. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Richard Daniels Jr.  As he arrived at the start line, a few stars still shone through the clouds and dotted the sky. Soon, the sun would begin to crest over the snow-capped mountains. As Smock and the other marathoners took off down the dusty hardtop road, they soon came across a group of up-armored trucks getting ready to roll out on a convoy. "That really puts things in perspective," Smock said later. "You see that and you think, 'This [race] is just for fun.' By the second lap, those guys were already gone, doing their job." At the halfway mark, Smock said, he was doing well, but the going got tougher with about five miles to go. "I hit my wall about 21, 22 miles," he said, "and started to need to take a break -- walk it out and make sure I keep fueling myself up. I used that finish line as my motivation." Smock, who lives in Liberty Hill, Texas, said he and his brothers, Michael and David, had planned to run the Miami Marathon together for almost a year "We are all doctors, all went to the same school, and are all very active, but have never run a marathon together," he said. "When I found out that I would be deployed and unable to run with them in Miami, it was disappointing, but I decided that it would not stop me from running 'with' them, even if it was from halfway around the world." Shortly after arriving at Fenty, Smock said, he contacted the Miami Marathon race directors and inquired about a satellite run. They were receptive and were happy to sponsor the run. "They also sent T-shirts, medals and several other goodies to pass out to all the participants," he added. Smock said he wore out three pairs of track shoes running laps around the airstrip to train for the event. The soles on the pair he wore for yesterday's race, in fact, were starting to separate. Though Smock missed an opportunity to be with his brothers when they ran the marathon in Miami just 10 hours after he finished his, he said he plans on running in future events together with them, barring another deployment. "I don't know if we will run Miami together in the future -- that will most likely depend on how our schedules work out -- but we are already tentatively planning to sign up this summer for the Ironman Triathlon in Lake Placid [New York] in 2012," Smock said. "Hopefully, no deployments interfere with those plans. I don't think I could find a place to swim in Iraq or Afghanistan." The 26.2 miles of the satellite course at Fenty comprised eight laps around the airstrip. Smock finished the race in 3 hours, 27 minutes. "I crushed my goal," he said. "I had run two marathons before, and I did each of those in just under four hours. I wanted to run 3:30 today. I think my official clock time was 3:27 and some change. I'm so excited right now!"

Related Sites:  NATO International Security Assistance Force

Free hip and knee replacements at DMCH

Ludhiana : A mega charity event `Operation Walk 2011' was inaugurated at DMCH on Saturday. Padam Brij Mohan Lal Munjal, chairman Emeritus, DMCH managing society, inaugurated the event.Under this project, hip and knee replacements of more than 50 poor needy patients would be done for free. The patients have been selected from all over Punjab after extensive recruitment camps. This would be carried out in association with a team from the USA led by Dr Paul Khanuja, director, Rubin Institute for Advanced Orthopaedics, USA. Operation Walk Maryland is a non-profit, volunteer medical service organisation providing free surgical treatment to patients in developing countries. 

DMCH managing society secretary Prem Kumar Gupta said patients would get all the services, latest imported implants and medicines totally free of cost under this project. He said: “A team consisting of about 45 people, including surgeons, anaesthesiologists, nursing staff, surgical technologists, physiotherapists and other supporting staff has reached DMCH and has brought with them equipments, implants and consumables to be used during this project.“ Dr Mohd Yamin, professor and head of orthopaedics said the patients would be operated with state of the art technology and equipments from the USA. He said the patients would also be given free walkers and post-operative information booklets. Dr Deepak Jain, assistant professor of orthopaedics, who is coordinating the project, said preparations for this project have been going on for more than a year to make it a success.
He said many young patients, who have lost their work due to disabling arthritis and are now dependent on their families, have been included in the project. This project would be carried out in newly renovated operation theaters and wards, which have been specially constructed with inputs from experts at USA. These operation theatres and wards have been equipped with the latest facilities and gadgets to make them at par with the international standards. Faculty from orthopedics department Dr Rajnish Garg, Dr Harpal S Selhi, Dr Sanjeev Mahajan, Dr Pankaj Mahindra and Dr SK Kohli made significant contributions to the project. 
During his visit to the hospital, Munjal also inaugurated newly renovated Neuro Ortho OT complex, Orthopedics ward, Pediatrics ward, Radio diagnosis block and emergency area, appreciating progress of the hospital.:-Rector Kathuria (Photo:Sukhjit Alkra)

Personal hygiene and health, occupations discussed

Afghan women attend a shura, or meeting, hosted by U.S. Marine Corps female engagement team members assigned 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team (RCT) 2 at Forward Operating Base Jackson in Sangin district, Afghanistan, Jan. 18, 2011. The topics discussed were personal hygiene and health, occupations, and what tribes and villages the women come from. RCT-2’s mission was to conduct counterinsurgency operations in partnership with the International Security Assistance Force. (DoD photo by Sgt. Artur Shvartsberg, U.S. Marine Corps/Released)

CMC will host International Master Class & workshop

Dr HS Bedi & Dr Masih with cardio vascular team during press conference  

Ludhiana: The CMCH (Christian Medical College & Hospital)  here has been chosen to host the prestigious “International Master Class on Venous Disease – 2011”. Dr Harinder Singh Bedi, Head, Cardio-Vascular and Thoracic surgery Department, CMCH, said, “In view of the extensive work on vascular disease being done in the CTVS Dept of CMC & H it was decided by an international panel to hold the workshop in Ludhiana”.Dr Bedi had also delivered a guest lecture on redo-surgery at the last International Workshop. Dr Bedi is credited with being a world leader and the pioneer in beating heart surgery and in the world’s first use of the radial artery in treatment of vascular disease of the leg.

Dr. HS Bedi & Dr Kanwal Masih before media

Renowned surgeons,including Prof Jean-Francois Uhl (France), Dr Ted King (USA), Dr Mark Malouf (Australia) and Dr Rene Milleret (France), will be assisting the CMC surgeons so that the latest techniques could be used to help people of this region. According to Dr Bedi, chronic venous disease is quite common in India as most of our population works in the standing position, leading to pressure on the veins which dilate. It is estimated that over a lakh die due to venous disease (DVT and PE) each year – which is the equivalent of the disappearance of a city the size of Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.

Dr. Bedi talking to media

The other members of the local faculty are Dr A Joseph, Dr A Gupta, Dr V Abraham, Dr V Bhasker, Dr A Bhardwaj, Dr P Gupta and Dr S Samuel. The conventional therapy of varicose veins is a major operation called stripping. It entails a long cut, pain, admission and a slow recovery.A revolutionary new technique called ‘Endovenous Thermal Ablation’ with a Radio Frequency Ablation (RFA) has been introduced and perfected at the CMC. It is this technique which will be discussed in detail at the workshop. Patients will have the advantage of having the best International experts in Ludhiana to lend their surgical skills. Officiating Director Dr.Kim Mammen, Medical Superintendent Dr.Kanwal Masih were also present on the occasion.Dr.Bedi can be contacted at 98140-60480 for any clarification.:-Rector Kathuria

Mrs. Mullen Issues Call to Support Military Families

Posted on Fri, Jan 28, 2011 at 1:30 AM By Christy Crimmins of Military Health System WASHINGTON, Jan. 27, 2011 - Though the nature of war changes for service members as weapons get smarter, tactics get sharper and medical advances save more and more lives, the stress and anxiety felt by their families never changes, Deborah Mullen, wife of Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told participants in the Military Health System's annual conference Jan. 24 in National Harbor, Md. Deborah Mullen, wife of Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addresses the 2001 Military Health System conference in National Harbor, Md., Jan. 24, 2011. DOD photo by Mike Oliver (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. "Our military families are beginning their day filled with the worry about the safety and security of their loved ones," she said. "I simply do not believe we fully understand the cumulative effects of stress, anxiety and worry that these families and their loved ones have endured, but we need to try, and we need to do so quickly." Mullen discussed fissures and cracks in the family support system and urged members of the Military Health System to help in finding ways to seal them. Among the most important issues, she said, is secondary post-traumatic stress. Like troops, she noted, families also suffer some of the same anxiety, loss of sleep, panic attacks and other symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Like their loved ones, many family members suffering from secondary post-traumatic stress turn to alcohol, drugs and even suicide, she added. Mullen explained that while medical privacy rules prevent accurate accounting of cases, anecdotal evidence exists of spouses attempting suicide. "Because we don't have the same access that we do to our troops, there is a real limit about what we know about their feelings and their fears," she said. "I am convinced that much of the desperation these drastic measures represent is rooted in the stigma still attached to mental health issues." Mullen suggested that some family members resist seeking assistance for mental health issues not only because of embarrassment, but also due to the fear that their request could negatively affect their husbands' or wives' military careers. "In many cases," she added, "a service member even warns his spouse about getting help." While commending the services for their efforts in overcoming the stigma of mental health problems in the ranks, Mullen said she encourages them to work to eliminate it in the home as well. Those who do seek help, she said, often are confronted with other issues, including misdiagnoses, lengthy waiting periods and red tape. "All of these things discourage, and indeed damage, the healing process for our families," she said. Mullen cited two instances in which spouses diagnosed with post-traumatic stress received multiple prescriptions, but no follow-up or referrals for psychological help. She also described the "15-to-1 rule" encountered by military spouses, an unspoken rule that no matter how many symptoms they may be suffering, they are given 15 minutes to discuss one symptom with a health care provider. The wife of the nation's top military officer emphasized the need to treat the whole person -- to look at the totality of issues confronting spouses, and to help spouses confront them. "You do not need to put on a pair of boots and patrol outside the wire to suffer the effects of war," she said. "If it is keeping you from living your life and loving your family, you owe it to yourself and, frankly, the military owes it to you, to get you the help you need." Ten years of war and multiple deployments have affected children of military families, Mullen said, citing evidence of elevated emotional and behavioral difficulties and the rise of the use of psychiatric medication to treat the increase in anxiety and depression in military families. "In 2009 alone, 300,000 prescriptions for psychiatric drugs were provided for military dependents under the age of 18," she said. "Some are no doubt warranted, but I worry that we don't fully understand the long-term consequences of these medications." Additionally, Mullen pointed out the confusion and stress children face when a parent, who may look the same as he or she did prior to deployment, acts differently due to a traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress. And while deployment is a definite stressor on military families, she added, reintegration and reunion also can present challenges add to stressors experienced by spouses, children and military members. Recent information released by the Army indicates that spouse and child abuse cases are on the rise, Mullen noted. "We have come to understand that while a combat tour may last a year, the effects of that tour on a service member and family may last much longer," she said. She stressed that the same suicide prevention training being integrated into the military culture should also be incorporated into the military family culture. "Building resilient families from the beginning of their military life, hopefully, will provide an underpinning of strength that can carry them through the most difficult times," Mullen said. One method of building this resilience, she told the group, is home-centered assistance, with a trained counselor or medical professional coming into the home and providing assistance. "It's about looking at things through their eyes and trying to find solutions that work for their unique circumstances," she said.

Related Sites: 2011 Military Health System Conference

First Lady Michelle Obama and Army Command

Army Maj. Gen. James Milano, Fort Jackson's commanding general, First Lady Michelle Obama and Army Command Sgt. Maj. Brian Stall watch soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment during the Pass in Review ceremony at Basic Combat Training graduation at Fort Jackson, S.C., Jan. 27, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Susanne Kappler 

Walks to a meeting on NATO Cyber Defense

 U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III, center left, walks to a meeting with national policy advisers on NATO Cyber Defense with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, center right, at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 25, 2011. (DoD photo by Master Sgt. Jerry Morrison, U.S. Air Force/Released)