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Practiced, Poised, Prepared for Pacific Partnership 2010

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS100330-29
Release Date: 3/30/2010 5:56:00 PM

By Douglas H. Stutz, Naval Hospital Bremerton Public Affairs

BREMERTON, Wash. (NNS) -- A farewell ceremony was held for Naval Hospital Bremerton (NHB) staff members who are embarking on hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) in support of Pacific Partnership 2010.

Approximately 25 NHB staff personnel have already been assigned to take part in Pacific Partnership 2010, the fifth of the annual series coordinated by U.S. Pacific Fleet to provide humanitarian civic assistance throughout the Western Pacific and Southeast Asia.

Mercy is scheduled to visit Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and Timor-Leste between May and September, with other U.S. Navy ships slated for Palau and Papua New Guinea. Australia, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore are some of the countries also participating.

"This is a tremendous opportunity for everyone who is deploying," said Capt. Mark E. Brouker, NHB commanding officer. "We're prepared for what we do and we all want to make a positive difference. Making a positive difference is what Pacific Partnership is all about."

Pacific Partnership 2010 is aimed at strengthening regional relationships with host nations and partner nations in Southeast Asia and Oceania, and is designed to enhance these relationships though medical, dental, veterinary and engineering outreach projects that reinforce the mutually supporting roles between participants. Pacific Partnership also improves the ability of the U.S. and regional countries to prepare for and better respond to disasters, such as pandemic illness, typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis.

"I'm looking forward to going," said Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Christopher Newcomer biomedical repair technician and Tacoma native. "We'll not only fix as much gear as we can but also help mentor [those in the host nation]."

In Pacific Partnership 2008, biomedical repair technicians off the Mercy were responsible for $2,965,719 worth of equipment that was put back into service.

U.S. naval forces have responded to numerous natural disasters over the years and each response has highlighted the importance of establishing relationships prior to such events. Pacific Partnership helps to strengthen long-term relationships by building international teams of both military and civilian specialists to deliver a wide variety of services to local communities identified by the host nation.

Delivering that wide variety of services will be a select diverse group of staff manning the Mercy, many with specific medical field expertise as well as numerous support staff with additional skill sets.

"This is such a great opportunity not only for me but also for my career as a Sailor," said Logistics Specialist Seaman Apprentice Octavio Ochoa, of Houston, Texas. "I expect to fill a billet with the ship's supply department. I'm ready to show what I can do and then some. I'm ready to go."

The collective prevailing sentiment for NHB staff members assigned to Pacific Partnership 2010 is a professional willingness to help in any way they can, as has been in the case in the previous deployments.