Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, TX –
The Navy chaplain at Navy Medicine Training Support Center
at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston is in the business of speaking to
students under stress.
After having enough young adults come through his office
speaking about the pressures of the classroom, he came up with a unique idea to
help alleviate some of the anxiety caused by a high-paced, non-stop rigid
routine – weekly pet visits to the barracks.
Almost every Wednesday night for more than a year, Lt. Cmdr.
Scott Adams, the sole chaplain at NMTSC, brings certified dogs and cats into
the barracks to be available as the students return from classes that day so
they can “de-stress” by petting and playing with the charismatic and fully
trained animals.
“When I got here there was just such a high stress level,”
Adams said. “I wanted to find a way to help combat some of that stress, so I
started this program. We have had such a great response from the students. They
really look forward to seeing the animals.”
Students young and old have had a positive reaction to the
presence of the animals.
Although most people have the option to interact with pets
if they please, most of the Navy students at the Medical Education and Training
Campus are fresh from boot camp and in neither location can they have their
furry friends with them to help cope with stress.
This is especially true of those in the Basic Medical
Technician Corpsman Program, known by the Navy as Hospital Corpsman “A” school.
“This is the best part of my week,” said Seaman Recruit
Jesse Howell, a student in the surgical technician “C” school, who arrived in San
Antonio for “A” school more than five months ago. “It’s so great to see them
because I don’t have my dog here and it’s a break from the regular routine.”
Between Adams and his helpers, they have five dogs and two
cats who have received their canine/feline good citizenship certificate and
pass from the base veterinarian to be allowed into the barracks for pet therapy
night. To achieve the certificate, the animals attend three classes totaling 18
weeks of training.
Adams says the growth of the program is promising and
reassures him that it won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
“We implemented an official standard operating procedure for
the program, so when I leave, it will continue on,” he said.
This is good news to the hundreds of students at the schoolhouse
who can and do look forward to playing with the animals every week.
“I love it,” said Seaman Jeniffer Rodriguez, “A” school
student. “It’s a relief for my stress, and I just love dogs!”