Travis Welcomes Surgeon General from Royal Thai Air Force

Published Sept. 6, 2013
By Senior Airman Madelyn Brown
60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs

Travis Air Force Base, Calif. -- Top ranking officials from the Directorate of Medical Services within the Royal Thai Air Force exchanged methods, processes and ideas with the 60th Medical Group commander and staff Aug. 27 and 28 during a tour of Travis Air Force Base.

The distinguished visitors included Air Marshal Chuphan Chansmorn, RTAF Surgeon General, Air Vice Marshal Supit Prasopsil, RTAF Expert, Group Captain Niwat Intarawichian, deputy director of department of preventive medicine, and Wing Commander Watcharaporn Paorohit, vice chief of education division. Their ranks equate to lieutenant general, major general, colonel and lieutenant colonel, respectively.

"We are all very excited to see David Grant USAF Medical Center," Prasopsil said.

In Thailand, the ten hospitals that fall under the RTAF are spread throughout the country, Prasopsil said. Unlike the U.S. Air Force medical centers, RTAF hospitals are tasked with caring for a large portion of the civilian population.

"We have many patients in Thailand," Chansmorn said. "Eighty percent of our care is going to civilians and only 20 percent to military personnel."

Chansmorn explained because California has many local civilian hospitals spread throughout the state, the U.S. Air Force hospitals can focus on providing care for military personnel.

More than 20 years ago, before Chansmorn was the top ranking military personnel in the Directorate of Medical Services within the RTAF, he traveled to the University of California, San Francisco to observe their medical procedures.

To observe other medical centers and their practices provides further knowledge for the RTAF, he said.

"Now we need to know about the Air Force medical centers and see how they take care of Air Force personnel," Chansmorn said.

The RTAF Surgeon General and staff were interested in visiting DGMC to gain a better understanding of how the U.S. Air Force manages preventative medicine, public health, occupational health and aerospace medicine.

"We are all Air Force personnel so to mesh together and learn from one another is beneficial," Chansmorn said.

After Col. Kevin Connolly, 60th MDG commander, completed the DGMC mission brief for the RTAF staff, the Surgeon General presented the RTAF mission video for the 60th MDG staff.

Historical facts such as the humanitarian airlift aid provided during the Vietnam War were presented throughout the video, as well as the RTAF core values.

The RTAF core values are represented through the acronym AIR, Prasopsil said. Airmanship, integrity and responsibility are the components that RTAF follow as guiding principles throughout their service.

At the conclusion of the DGMC tour, the RTAF Surgeon General expressed his gratitude to Connolly and the DGMC staff.

"I would like to thank you for your hospitality and the warm welcome," Chansmorn said. "This has been a great opportunity. The briefing was comprehensive and interesting. It is a great benefit to the Royal Thai Air Force's future."