Joint forces bring medical care to local village

Romanian Maj. Daniel Aron (left) and U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Michael Denton provide medical assistance to villagers in Jarullah, Zabul Province, Afghanistan, Oct. 2. Aron is a doctor with the Romanian Army’s 30th Mountain Battalion and Denton is with the Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team medical staff. Zabul PRT doctors and medics mentored their Romanian counterparts during the battalion’s first village medical outreach. (U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Jean Duggan)

Joint forces bring medical care to local village

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Felicita Torres-Perkins (right) and Romanian Staff Sgt. Nistorescu Ioana hand out vitamins to children in Jarullah village, Zabul province, Afghanistan, Oct. 2. Torres-Perkins is a medic for the Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team and Ioana is a nurse practitioner in the 30th Mountain Battalion. Zabul PRT doctors and medics mentored the Romanians during the battalion’s first village medical outreach since arriving in country. (U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Jean Duggan)

Joint Forces bring medical care to local village

Published Oct. 6, 2008
By Capt. Jean Duggan
Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team Public Affairs

ZABUL PROVINCIAL RECONSTRUCTION TEAM, Qalat, Afghanistan -- Medical personnel from the U.S. and Romania teamed up to bring much needed medical care to Jarullah village in Zabul province Oct. 2.

Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team doctors and medics, who have been in the province since March, mentored their Romanian counterparts in the 30th Mountain Battalion during their first village medical outreach since arriving in country.

"We've been here for three months, and this was our first medical mission," said Romanian Maj. Daniel Aron, a doctor with the 30th Mountain Battalion. "It went really well. Working with the U.S. team was great and now I'm comfortable going out with just my team for future missions."

"It is very good to have the joint forces here to help our village people," said Haji Rhmat Ullah, Jarullah village elder. "The people from this village are very poor and they need medical treatment, they need medicine."

The joint team visited Jarullah on the last day of Eid ul-Fitr, the three-day celebration following the month of Ramadan. About 50 men, women and children were treated as most had left to be with family over the holiday. The smaller group provided an ideal environment for the Zabul PRT medical staff to train their Romanian peers in preparation for larger missions.

"Our medical team is only trained to treat our own personnel, not local villagers," said Aron. "So, this was a very good experience with our American colleagues and we worked very well together. I was really impressed with the mission today and especially enjoyed interacting with the children."

The joint team treated individual complaints and gave vitamins to the children.

"This mission was a huge success and provided me with an opportunity to work with and show another female medic how VMOs are accomplished," said Senior Airman Felicita Torres-Perkins, Zabul PRT medic. "(The International Security Assistance Force) has dozens of countries working together to rebuild Afghanistan - a y opportunity we have to work with our international partners is beneficial to our mission here."

While Aron and his staff were treating villagers, the 30th Mountain Battalion commander conducted a key leader engagement with village elders. As the VMO wrapped up, the Romanians provided villagers with humanitarian assistance from "Save the Children," a Romanian charity.