The Maryland National Guard sent 19 of its medically trained soldiers to Senegal as part of a new U.S. Department of Defense effort to provide humanitarian services and establish good relationships in Africa.
The unit returned Thursday, and the Examiner spoke with Deputy State Surgeon Maj. William Fox, of Baldwin in Baltimore County, about his experience in Senegal.
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Your primary mission was to help the Senegalese people. How did you accomplish that?
We had a C-130 [military cargo plane] with medical supplies — vitamins, dressings, bandages, dental supplies, eyeglasses, syringes. I wish I could tell you the tonnage of equipment we brought.
We pulled into Podor, which is about 500 miles from the capital city Dakar.
We set up a triage tent and a pharmacy. The next day, hundreds of people were waiting in line when we opened up.
The patients were examined for various medical conditions, then given prescriptions.
At one point, we ran out of the children’s dosage for a head fungus medicine. So one of our pharmacists crushed the remaining pills and made a compound out of it so we could keep going.
I’d say we helped nearly 2,000 people, and issued 6,000 to 7,000 prescriptions in two weeks.
What kind of medical conditions did you see?
It’s amazing how we take for granted what we have here in this country. In Podor, the women work in the field, and the men fish. They don’t have sunglasses, so they develop eye problems like cataracts and growths from constant UV exposure.
Because of poor sanitary conditions and what’s in the rivers there, people get worms and other parasites. Malaria is frequent, and many people had polio.
These people have nothing.
Hundreds were turned away everyday [because of the volume], and many of those people walked miles to come there. And to treat as many people as possible, you had to have the wisdom of Solomon to ask, ‘OK, what’s important to you today?’ It’s such a difficult position, and it’s a tough decision.
I know it will be a different Thanksgiving for me.
What was the most profound moment during your mission?
One young lady came in on all fours. She had polio, her legs atrophied. Her crutches were so old that she wore them out. I’ve been a medical provider for 12 years, and even I had to walk out of the room.
We’re trying to get a set of new crutches and have them shipped to her.
The people were mostly Muslim, and I felt no animosity. They were genuinely very thankful. It was an opportunity where I got to see more thankful patients in one day than throughout my life.
Everyone in our group left with an awareness and an appreciation for how fortunate we are. These people have nothing.
But what if those people need medical assistance now that your unit is gone?
And that’s the thing — I’m giving this person medication right now, but when I leave, this [illness] will return again. You can’t give a kid a lollipop; they need sustenance.
Because of our position, I think it’s incumbent upon us to work with other developing nations. And the National Guard, and this country, can rise to that level. More partnerships with places in need, like Podor, would help those people a great deal. We have the people who want to go there and help.
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