FORT CAVAZOS, Texas – Members of Greater Killeen Chamber of Commerce visited the Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center for a Healthcare Day tour 16 April to learn how community relationships contribute to the health and readiness of our warfighters.
The Leadership Killeen Program provides participants with training and opportunities to learn about the integrated relationships that exist between healthcare services on Fort Cavazos and the local healthcare community.
“The most import thing is our partnership with our community, and our hospital is uniquely and sensitively tied to the surrounding Central Texas community,” said CRDAMC Commander Col. Garrick Cramer. 
The members toured some of the hospitals inpatient and emergency departments and the Intrepid Spirit Center to receive an overview of the services, capabilities and readiness support the hospital provides to Fort Cavazos and the surrounding community.
“The Department of Family and Community Medicine is one of the largest primary care platforms in the Military Health System, with over 50,000 enrolled patients and 300 staff members, primarily civilian DoD employees who reside in the local community,” said CRDAMC DFCM Chief Lt. Col. Haroon Samar. “Most of our patients are family members of active duty servicemembers stationed at Ft Cavazos and retirees.”
 The department provides inpatient and outpatient services, including obstetric care, and a force generation platform for Army Medicine that trains family physicians and family medicine obstetric specialists who go on to serve all over the world as Army Medical Corps officers, he added.
“Our connection to the local community is a cornerstone of our work at CRDAMC,” said Samar.
CRDAMC Deputy Director of Medical Services Maj. Mallory Pinger, noted that CRDAMC depends on its community healthcare organizations and providers to allow beneficiaries to receive the care required in a timely manner.
“We couldn’t be more grateful for all of the ways our community supports our service members and their family members in their time of need,” said Pinger.
Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center, Nursing Operations Officer, Capt. Hugh Elsea and Department of Labor and Delivery Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge, Sgt. 1st Class Daniel Hernandez, led the group through the labor and delivery and mother baby units.
CRDAMC Emergency Medicine Trauma Nurse and Nurse Officer in Charge, Capt. Adam Jabour, led the members on a tour of the emergency room, and Holly Galiana, paramedic, and Erika Nelson, emergency medical technician for Emergency Medical Services at Fort Cavazos, demonstrated the capabilities of an emergency services department ambulance for the members.
“Fort Cavazos is one of the largest active duty armored military bases in the country. All five boroughs of New York city can fit in the Fort Cavazos footprint. CRDAMC is not just responsible for health services within the Fort Cavazos land mass, but we also provide health services to all our beneficiaries within a 40-mile radius,” said Jabour. “This includes the cities of Killeen, Temple, Copperas Cove, and Gatesville. We collaborate with healthcare organizations in the Central Texas marketplace to ensure our soldiers, retirees and their families have accessible, high-quality care.”
Leadership Killeen Program Manager Roni Nail was happy to see that CRDAMC has maintained its reputation for high quality, access to care since the last tour in 2022.  
“I wanted the group to see that CRDAMC is a top-tier hospital, committed to delivering exceptional medical care to soldiers and their families,” said Nail. “It's important for them to understand that the quality of care provided on post is equal to what any civilian would receive at local hospitals off post.”
Overall, it was a fantastic experience—well-organized, informative, and a valuable training opportunity for community leaders, Nail added.
“I was impressed by how command leadership adapted by using medics to help fill critical staffing gaps, I don’t think our community is fully aware of how effective that has been,” she said.  “The tour also demonstrated the incredible work being done at the Intrepid Spirit Center to support soldiers dealing with TBI and PTSD,” Nail concluded.
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