JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON –
Maj. Gen. M. Ted Wong relinquished command of Southern Regional Medical Command to Maj. Gen. Jimmie O. Keenan during a change of command ceremony at MacArthur Parade Field June 6.
SRMC is the Army's largest medical region. It has 11 military treatment facilities across 11 states, as well as the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
The SRMC cares for 503,116 beneficiaries and has a total of 23,284 staff members.
During his two-year tenure as the SRMC commanding general, Wong also served as the commanding general of Brooke Army Medical Center for 18 months.
He was hand-picked by Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Patricia D. Horoho, who is also commanding general of the U.S. Army Medical Command, to lead the transformation of BAMC through the Army's portion of the Base Realignment and Closure process, seamlessly integrating with Wilford Hall Medical Center, the largest Air Force military treatment facility located at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland.
Simultaneously, Wong served as the San Antonio Military Health System deputy director, working closely with SAMHS Director Air Force Maj. Gen. Byron C. Hepburn to continue to deliver high-quality care to San Antonio area military members and their families.
Wong is currently serving as the U.S. Army Dental Corps Chief.
Later this month, he will assume command as the commanding general of the Northern Regional Medical Command at Fort Belvoir, Va.
Keenan entered the Army as a nurse corps officer in July 1986, receiving her commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Henderson State University in Arkansas.
She holds a master of science in nursing administration from the Medical College of Georgia and a master's degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College.
She has also served as a Congressional Fellow for former U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.
Keenan is currently the chief of the U.S. Army Nurse Corps.
She was also the commanding general for U.S. Army Public Health Command prior to her selection as commanding general of SRMC.
Keenan will also assume the duties of the deputy director of San Antonio Military health System and will take over as the director in September, replacing Hepburn.
Keenan will be the first Army general officer to become SAMHS director. In this capacity, she will oversee all military medical treatment facilities across the San Antonio metropolitan area, including the Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center.
Keenan also addressed the SRMC military treatment facility commanders and staff, and emphasized their mission to take care of America's sons and daughters, no matter the challenges that lay ahead.