43rd Medical Group: Big Things With Small Numbers

POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- The 43rd Medical Group is a medium-sized clinic by Air Force standards, but the clinic holds its own amongst medical centers twice its size. 

"We do so much for this wing that people don't even realize - far beyond providing medical care to family members," said Col. Brenda Bullard, 43rd MDG commander.
The 43rd MDG provides health services for more than 13,000 beneficiaries with more than 50,000 annual patient visits and care supplied by only 11 providers while ensuring that Pope's active duty are medically ready to deploy. 

But did you know that medics provide support for joint force exercises, jump coverage for the Army and Air Force Special Operations Command, base events, community health events, and support the readiness needs of the base and the Army community, while deploying their own members to serve where needed world-wide? And all of that is done with only 289 active duty and civilian personnel and a budget of only $5.3 million?
This past year, the 43rd MDG competed against 10 other medical groups, two of which were major medical centers, for 47 Air Mobility Command Annual Air Force Medical Service awards and delivered outstanding results. 

The 43rd MDG brought home 11 winners with one also winning at Air Force level.
Senior Airman Darany Leuthiphonh brought home the Air Force Outstanding Dental Airman of the Year award for her superior performance as a technician. Airman Leuthiphonh performed 518 dental cleanings; a value of $70,000, ensuring 96 percent of Team Pope was mission-ready for Operation Iraqi Freedom. She also revamped the dental exam and cleaning process, producing a 20 percent appointment increase and 95 percent of patients received same-day cleaning. 

Maj. Antoinette McNeary was chosen as the Advanced Practice Nurse of the Year. Major McNeary identified a deployed Airman with abnormal lab results and coordinated her airlift to Balad, Iraq, for treatment and was returned to full duty. She detected subtle symptoms and diagnosed a large uterine mass, leading to emergency surgery that saved a patient's life. 

Capt. Dana Longo won Group Practice Manager of the Year, exceeding the Group third quarter Air Force business plan by 34 percent for the first time in three years. She battled a 28 percent provider shortfall, doing more with fewer doctors and physicians assistants. Captain Longo analyzed the active duty no-show rate, and elevated statistics to commanders, reducing the rate by 50 percent. That process also saved the Air Force $56,000. 

The awards kept rolling in with Capt. Robert Delancy Jr. winning Company Grade Officer Physician Assistant of the Year. He personally handled 4,103 patient encounters and generated more than $384,000 in revenue for the 43rd MDG. Captain Delancy evaluated a 37-year-old male experiencing dizziness, and he diagnosed a diabetic crisis. His swift treatment saved a man's life. 

Capt. Michael Akins was chosen as the CGO Aerospace Physiologist of the Year, aiding the Army Special Operations Parachute Test Directorate. A crew member in an ASOPTD airdrop mission to 24,999 feet experienced an oxygen shortage. Captain Akins saw this and prevented the Soldier from hypoxia. His expert operational physiologist consultation on an Israeli parachuting mishap aided in determining the cause of the hypoxia. 

The 43rd Aeromedical-Dental Squadron's Dental Clinic took home AMC's Dental Clinic of the Year, completing 5,300 exams for 25 squadrons, with a 96 percent dental readiness for class one and two. The 43rd Airlift Wing was deployment-ready for OIF tasking. The dental clinic superbly managed the flight dentistry program, earning a 97 percent personnel mission ready rate for deployments. 

The dental clinic continued to rack up the awards with Senior Master Sgt. Kaleth Wright winning the Outstanding Dental Senior NCO of the Year for managing duty schedules for 43rd personnel which ensured 100 percent personnel coverage for eight providers. This resulted in a 98 percent appointment utilization rate, beating the Air Force average by three percent. Sergeant Wright is a sought after speaker, emceeing the SNCO induction, the wing promotion ceremony, SNCO Professional Development Seminar graduation and the Martin Luther King holiday ceremony. 

Rounding out the dental clinic awards was Staff Sgt. Kelly Bradshaw, who won Outstanding Dental NCO of the Year, for expediting short-notice exams for 43rd Security Forces and Maintenance Squadrons, readying 102 Team Pope Warriors for deployment in three days. Sergeant Bradshaw is a phenomenal mentor whose leadership yielded three below-the-zone promotees and two performers of the month and an Air Force level award winner for the 43rd MDG. 

Capt. Kirk Jenkins brought in the Outstanding Medical Logistics CGO of the Year for his superior mission focus. He readied two war readiness materiel projects in less than five hours and supported the Hurricane Katrina rescue mission in New Orleans. He was the first AFSO 21 Green Belt facilitator in the wing and coordinated $625,000 in medical equipment funding,which kept the clinic current in state-of-the-art technology for improved quality of care. 

Senior Airman Renee Knox won the Surgeon General's Medical Readiness Award. She championed a $4,000 mobility equipment buy and distributed it to ensure troop effectiveness in the field. Airman Knox coordinated with the 43rd Civil Engineers Squadron to track chemical warfare training for 215 Airmen. 

The 43rd MDG was also home to the Outstanding SNCO Health Plans Management Award winner, Master Sgt. Clarence Haymer, who breathed new life into the special needs program and ensured all of Pope's special needs families received the care they need. Additionally, Sergeant Haymer volunteered 300+ hours to mentor youth in his church ministry, discussing how to effectively manage problems. 

In addition, the laboratory won the Chief of Staff Team Excellence Award for completing more than 60,000 lab tests with a 99 percent accuracy rate, and was the leading authority on infection control, ensuring that the Pope community was prevention-focused. 

Two civilians were recognized for their outstanding performance, not only in their duty sections, but also for their impact on the community. 

Mr. Scott Oatman earned the honor of Air Force Association Outstanding Civilian of the Year. He introduced Womack Army Medical Center to Pope's Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century program, and assisted in joint adoption of Department of Defense Continuous Process Improvement program. Mr. Oatman also was a key working-group member for rapid improvement events, saving 500,000 man-hours and $300,000 each year. 

Mr. Ira Shaw was recognized as the 2006 Blacks in Government Meritorious Service Award winner. He is the 43rd MDG voice for all of our beneficiaries and makes a continued effort to educate the staff on improving the overall quality of delivered healthcare. He coordinates the flawless delivery of healthcare for more than 13,500 enrollees and provides oversight and inputs to a $2.3 billion healthcare services contract. 

Recently, Tech. Sgt. Pam Surette was selected as the AMC NCO Association Vanguard Award winner for saving a life while she vacationed. She performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation, utilized a defibrillator, stabilized the patient and coordinated an emergency room transfer. 

Capt. Jessica Kehren was chosen for the Malcolm Grow Award recipient as AMC's Flight Surgeon of the Year for meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight during combat operations. She is a flight surgeon for 2nd Airlift Squadron providing care to all active duty and family members assigned to 2nd AS. 

This medical group, although small in size, delivers huge results recognized across the command and across the Air Force. 

"I couldn't ask for a more dedicated, hardworking staff than the people of the 43rd Medical Group," Colonel Bullard said. "I'm proud to be their commander."