Assistant Teaching Professor, Vickie V. Johnsen, PhD, RN and part-time faculty, Jennie Faulk, RN, recently returned from participation with Operation Continuing Promise 2009. The location was on board the USNS Comfort, a full-service U. S. Navy hospital ship. As a post-operative nurse, Johnsen was among the 50 civilian volunteers who rotated to the ship in Nicaragua for three weeks of service. Faulk was an ICU nurse off the coasts of El Salvador and Columbia.

The objective of the massive floating hospital is to provide a continuing promise of medical and surgical care to developing nations in the Caribbean and Latin America. Although sponsored by the United States, it is an international effort that includes over 800 military and medical personnel across the globe. LDS Humanitarian Services plays an important role by providing medical supplies and volunteers.

Johnsen described a typical scenario for hopeful patients as USNS Comfort dropped anchor at each port.

“I went onshore where there were literally thousands of people waiting to see a health care provider. I met a woman with several pre-school children who left her village at midnight and waited in the hot sun all morning with her little ones in tow. The children were exhausted and immediately fell asleep when they were finally brought indoors.

“I helped facilitate “traffic” as people were screened to determine their needs. Those accepted for treatment waited inside a government-owned clinic and were later transported by helicopter or by boat to the hospital ship. Surgery was performed the next morning. Thereafter, the patients, about half of whom were children, were transferred to the post-operative unit of the ship and were usually returned to shore the following day.”

Surgeries included hernia repairs, cataract removal, and dental-related procedures. Cosmetic surgeries to improve the lives of people were also common. Cleft palette and other repairs that require multiple surgeries will be continued the following year when the hospital ship once again comes into port.

Fellow volunteers in the post-operating unit of the ship included several BYU nursing alumni: Lisa Barnes, Jennifer Smith, Julie Salazar, Ann Palmer, and her daughter, Camera Palmer.

Faulk told of meeting Luis, a young boy severely burned as an infant when the mosquito netting surrounding his bed caught fire. His parents were addicted to drugs, and with no one to care for him, he eventually made his home on the streets, begging for money. On the USNS Comfort he received surgery to release a contracted scar on his arm, allowing him more mobility.

“As we prepared to leave Columbian waters, I stood near the exit door to offer a friendly and final wave goodby,” said Faulk. “Louis saw me, and reached out to hug me. As we held each other, he said something in Spanish that I did not understand. A little boy with no worldly possessions reached out and gave his heart to someone with so many blessings.”

Asked if she would volunteer again, Johnsen’s immediate response was, “Yes! It was a great experience. I gained a new appreciation for what it means to serve. You’ll hear about it for the rest of my life.”

The USNS Comfort completed its four-month mission in July of this year. Medical professionals performed 90,000 medical procedures including 3,000 surgeries. No wonder it called  “the most powerful ship in the U. S. Navy.”