US Navy Health Command visits GRMC

From left, Capt. Timothy H. Weber, chief of staff at Navy Medicine West; CMDCM Loren Rucker, command master chief at Navy Medicine West; Dr. Felix Cabrera, chief medical officer at GRMC; Rear Admiral Paul Pearigen, commander at Navy Medicine West and Chief of the Navy Medical Corps; Capt. Maria Young, new commanding officer at USNH Guam; Dr. Michael Cruz, president and chief operating officer at GRMC; Capt. Steven Kewish, executive officer at USNH Guam; MCPO Sergio Jardon, command master chief at USNH Guam. (Contributed Photo)

DEDEDO, Guam—Leadership team members of Navy Medicine West and U.S. Naval Hospital Guam recently visited Guam Regional Medical City to discuss capabilities, patient loads and partnership opportunities. The Navy Medicine West team, headquartered at Naval Base San Diego, California, is led by Rear Admiral Paul D. Pearigen, who serves as commander, Navy Medicine West, and the chief of the Navy Medical Corps. The Navy Medicine West team was on Guam to attend the USNH change of command ceremony for retiring Commanding Officer, Captain Dan Cornwell, and new Commanding Officer, Captain Maria Young.

“The staff at Guam Regional Medical City was very welcoming and I appreciated the opportunity to visit their hospital and learn more about their capabilities and services,” said Rear Admiral Pearigen. “Having a collaborative relationship with local health care providers ensures that our beneficiaries have access to a broader range of medical care and services.”

Dr. Michael Cruz, president and chief operating officer at GRMC, expressed appreciation for the collaborative relationship between USNH and GRMC. “GRMC’s world class medical services provide the U.S. military on Guam with an alternative to sending servicemembers and their dependents off island for specialized medical care,” said Cruz. The relationship is expected to grow as the military buildup on Guam is primarily taking place within a few miles of GRMC.

According to GRMC, the hospital had more than 100,000 patient visits since opening its doors on July 1, 2015, and approximately 9,000 of those visits were from soldiers, veterans, and their dependents. GRMC officials also pointed out that the hospital will soon be part of the largest medical campus in the Western Pacific when construction of the six-building Latte Medical Plaza is completed by local developer, Cesar Cabot, on the property adjacent to GRMC.

Navy Medicine West leads Navy Medicine’s Western Pacific health care system and global research and development enterprise. Throughout the region, NMW provides medical care to nearly 700,000 beneficiaries across 10 naval hospitals, two dental battalions, and 51 branch clinics located throughout the West Coast of the U.S., Asia, and the Pacific. Globally, NMW also has oversight of eight research laboratories across the U.S. and overseas that deliver high-value, high-impact research products to support and protect the health and readiness of service members.

GRMC is a 136-bed acute care hospital, offering world-class medical care to the residents of Guam as well as the CNMI, FSM, Palau and the Marshall Islands. GRMC is committed to improving the well-being of the people of Micronesia by tailoring its services to the health care needs of the people who live here. That means being a center of excellence for cardiac care, advanced stroke care, comprehensive cancer care, and by providing a variety of treatments for diabetes and other diseases. GRMC’s core philosophy is “Patients Are Partners.” (PR)