JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii -- Recently, Airmen from the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Surgeon General office (SGO) and members of the Vietnamese Military Medical University (VMMU) partook in a virtual knowledge exchange to discuss topics of aerospace and expeditionary medicine.

The engagement allowed attendees to highlight Vietnam’s COVID-19 prevention and management initiatives.

“Vietnam rapidly implemented necessary COVID-19 prevention, detection, and control activities under the strong leadership of the government and effective multi-sectoral coordination and collaboration,” said Capt. Inara Xie, PACAF SGO international health specialist. “They have had persistent and strict applications of key outbreak response measures.”

After the congratulatory conversation of Vietnam’s COVID-19 mitigation procedures, the forum moved to discuss training and education opportunities with the VMMU. The discussion focused on the relation of aerospace medicine and aeromedical evacuation to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operation.

“This was the first opportunity since COVID began to open the dialogue with Vietnam,” said Col. Michael Foutch, PACAF deputy command surgeon. “We wanted to emphasize the importance of growing medical initiatives between the U.S. and Vietnam. Our aim is to continue our collaboration with Vietnam and we look forward to a future with robust medical engagements and exchanges.”

Continued knowledge exchanges, virtual or otherwise, strengthen the bond and increase all parties’ capabilities to respond across the Indo-Pacific in the case of humanitarian crises.