Naval Hospital Jacksonville begins Guantanamo Bay, Cuba deployments

This is the first wave of three groups totaling 106 hospital personnel who will be headed to the island to provide medical support in the detainee camp this summer. The Naval Hospital Jacksonville units which include hospital corpsmen, nurses and physicians will replace personnel from other military treatment facilities who will be rotating out following a two-week transition period with the arriving troops.

Before flying to Guantanamo the medical personnel first go to Fort Lewis in Tacoma, Wash. for training/orientation in a simulated detainee environment before continuing their trip to Cuba via Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, N.C. The officer in charge of the Naval Hospital Jack-sonville team is family practice physician Cmdr. Jeffrey Quin-lan and Cmdr. Eliza-beth French is the unit's senior nurse.

As far as the unit's readiness for the mission, French said, ''We're taking the right mix and getting the right training. I think we'll do well.''

French noted that the hospital is solidly prepared to meet both its dual mission of readiness to support our troops abroad while continuing to provide excellent health care at home. She said this is nothing new for Naval Hospital Jacksonville.

''The hospital is always doing deployments and cross training,'' she explained. ''I'm sure there will be an impact but it should all seem seamless to our patients. The staff will adjust their workload and we'll be putting Reservists (and contract personnel) where needed.''

As always, the Sailors leaving for this six-month deployment had mixed emotions and reservations at being separated from their families and friends, but also excitement at meeting the challenges of the job before them.

Naval Hospital Jacksonville Commanding Officer, Capt. Raquel Bono speaks to a group of hospital personnel at the Jacksonville International Airport as they prepare to leave for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Referring to her fellow corpsmen she's leaving behind, HM2 Sheila Velez said, ''I'm going to miss these guys. But I'm all set to go,'' she continued. ''I'm looking forward to it. It will be a good learning experience.''

As this is her first deployment, Velez said she is very thankful to her fellow corpsmen HM1 Misty Taylor and HM3 Carlos Calzada for telling her what to expect and how to prepare herself. Both have been stationed at Guantanamo before she noted.

Velez was seen off by her husband, Ernesto and children; Rashan, Michael, Fernando and Krista. She said she'd been preparing her family for several months, arranging day care, etc. but she said it is still difficult, especially for the younger children.

''I won't be here for the first day of school. I'll miss out on that,'' she said sadly.

Before Velez and the other deploying Sailors said their final farewells and entered the concourse, Naval Hospital Jacksonville Commanding Officer Capt. Raquel Bono reminded them of the significance of their mission.

''What we're doing is very, very important. You'll have the support from a great chain of command out there and we're all here for you as well,'' she said. ''Do us proud! They know that Naval Hospital Jacksonville is coming.''