JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas –
The staff members of the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research Burn Center at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston conducted a subject matter expert exchange with medical doctors from the Pakistan Army Sept. 12-13.
The SMEE was part of a five-year military-to-military plan between the U.S. Central Command and the Ministry of Defense of Pakistan designed for continuous support of regional stability. Maj. Elena Amspacher, a U.S. Air Force critical care nurse and international health specialist at the Office of the Command Surgeon at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., coordinated the visit.
“The Pakistani doctors consisted of two brigadier generals, two colonels and a major,” Amspacher said. “The purpose of the SMEE was to exchange information related to burn care with a focus on reconstructive surgery and best practices on burn care.”
During the two-day SMEE the Pakistan delegation received a brief of the USAISR Burn Center and the Burn Flight Team, sat in a round table discussion on burn care and ongoing research, and participated in morning rounds conducted in the Burn Intensive Care Unit.
“This was a very successful and productive visit,” said Brig. Gen. Saddat Ali Janjua, head of the Pakistani Army Burn Center. “We read the same research literature and perform similar procedures in our burn centers. Overall, it was a very positive exchange of information and experience.”
“This event helped improve the mutual understanding of the aspects and clinical practice guidelines as well as lessons learned in burn care in the U.S. and Pakistan,” Amspacher said. “U.S. Central Command will continue building capacity and capability of Pakistan military medical forces.”