Walter Reed National Military Medical Center hosted the 2025 National Capital Consortium (NCC) graduation June 13 at the Strathmore Music Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

The annual graduation celebrates the more than 200 military medical graduates completing internships, residencies, and fellowships. In addition to Walter Reed, the NCC includes the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Malcolm Grow Medical Clinics and Surgery Center at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, and Alexander T. Augusta Military Medical Center at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

U.S. Navy Capt. (Dr.) Melissa Austin, director of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), congratulated the graduates for their achievements, adding that current world events reinforce the need for a “strong, ready military medical force.” She added that the graduates’ training prepares them to answer the call for duty downrange and at home, providing the best health care for service members and their families.

Journalist and author Lee Woodruff served as guest speaker, stating that her husband, journalist Bob Woodruff, would not be alive had it not been for military medicine and its providers.

“His recovery was nothing short of amazing,” stated Woodruff, who described military medical care as “phenomenal.”

Woodruff added the graduates chose “a noble profession on two fronts” – medicine and service to their country in uniform. “This takes a very special person.”

The NCC, created in 1995, is the largest sponsor of the graduate medical education program in the Military Health System. Its graduates complete training in various disciplines lasting from one to seven years, with a first-time board pass rate of more than 95 percent. One of the highest in the nation among GME programs.

The annual graduation marks another step in the readiness of the more than 200 graduates seeking to make their lasting impact as military health care providers and carrying forth the legacy of Walter Reed.