New mobile hospital enhances Ugandan military capacity

Soldiers from Uganda People’s Defence Force trained on setting-up, taking down, and operating a UN-standard level-2 hospital, at the Uganda Rapid Deployment Capabilities Center in Jinja, Uganda, May 6-17, 2019.

By U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Grady Jones , U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs May 23, 2019

View Gallery

Gallery contains 14 images

JINJA, Uganda— Rapid emergency medical response is always critical in crisis situations around the world. In order to rapidly deploy to peacekeeping operations or respond to emerging crises in Africa, soldiers from Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF) recently conducted training on efficiently and effectively setting-up, taking down, and operating a UN-standard level-2 hospital, at the Uganda Rapid Deployment Capabilities Center in Jinja, Uganda, May 6-17, 2019.

The training, which was conducted by representatives from the hospital package vendor, is part of a two-week engagement under the African Peacekeeping Rapid Response Partnership program, or APRRP, which is a program funded by the U.S. Department of State, to help African nations enhance their peacekeeping and security capabilities, by providing resources and training to African partner militaries.

APRRP provides significant but targeted resources to help generate and rapidly deploy peacekeepers in six partner countries who have demonstrated the willingness and ability to respond to regional crises, according to Lt. Col. Sueann Ramsey, director, Program and Joint Force Support Center for Global Health Engagement, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.

Uganda was one of the very first countries to be a part of APRRP since this program began in 2016, she said.

“This training marks a very important milestone for the APRRP program overall,” said Ramsey. “The purpose of APRRP is to help these partner nations institutionalize capabilities that enable self-sustainment of rapid response mechanisms.”

The first week, trainers from the vendor trained soldiers from the UPDF on how to set-up and operate the hospital. The second week, the soldiers planned, set-up, and operated the hospital with minimal guidance, according to Jorge Ortiz, vendor trainer.

“The soldiers developed a great layout plan that supported their needs,” Ortiz said."We're very proud of the way they work and of their accomplishments."

“This demonstrates an independent capability for them to set-up and operate this very extensive medical capability in an operational setting,” said Dr. Charles Beadling, associate professor, USUHS. “Their leaders are taking charge and they own this process. They are doing this independently with only occasional advice and counseling from the vendor trainers. It has been really impressive.”

The hospital package includes 14 shelters with a total of 690 square meters (7,427 square feet) of shelter space, which includes an intensive care unit, radiology unit, and a total of 30 beds.

“This hospital will be able to hold 10-20 inpatients and support up to four surgeries per day, as well as support the military operation in a crisis response,” Beadling explained. “The hospital was designed to meet certain electrical, potable and non-potable water, and sewage disposal requirements.”

The facility is also equipped with two laundry rooms, two surgical bridges/scrub rooms, a kitchen, and two generators.

“This treatment facility is important because in case of an emergency situation you’ll have casualties and medical emergencies coming in,” said 1st Lt. Vincent Nzayisenga, medical clinic officer, UPDF, and training class leader. “So, there should be a specific place where those emergencies have to be attended to.”

A mass casualty exercise also took place as part of the training, where 25 UPDF soldiers donned moulage make-up and feigned notional injuries while other UPDF soldiers took on the role as hospital staff, triaging, treating, diagnosing, and stabilizing the simulated casualties.

“The mass casualty exercise involved me setting up an incident command structure and working with the auxiliary staff to make sure that the mission happened,” said Cpt. Timothy Muyimbo, anesthesiologist, UPDF. “The most important thing is to have drills more frequently. We have the equipment, now we need to train, maintain, and sustain. We want all our medics to become more oriented with the hospital because they are the first line in casualty care.”

“This is a very good hospital and it has very good capabilities, and will enhance our peace support operations if we deploy it,” Maj. Gen. Ambrose Musinguzi, chief of medical services, UPDF.

Maj. Gen. Paul Lokech, commandant, Uganda Rapid Deployment Capabilities Center, UPDF, expressed optimism regarding the treatment center and partnering with the U.S.

“Today’s problems required a shared responsibility,” said Lokech. “I would like to thank the U.S. Government, and U.S. AFRICOM. When we work together I’m sure we will be able to fix the problems in the region.”

Federal Government of Somalia engages ISIS-Somalia with support from U.S. Forces

Africa Endeavor

U.S. Forces conduct strike against ISIS-Somalia

U.S. Africa Command 2025 Posture Statement to Senate Armed Services Committee

U.S. Forces conduct strike against ISIS-Somalia

Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord

NAIROBI, Kenya – Among the flurry of tactical live fires and squad movement drills, air ground integration and even the humanitarian initiatives at exercise Justified Accord 2025 (JA25), lies the one thing those who serve in any armed force must follow: The Law. The Law of Armed Conflict, or LOAC, is a key aspect of training for any military. JA25’s academics course aimed at learning from the international legal lessons of previous wars in an effort to reduce the amount of human suffering in future conflicts. “The soldier’s rules are a broad set of rules that we have pulled from the large breadth of international law,” said U.S. Army Maj. Tim Olliges, an operational law attorney assigned to U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF), the lead U.S. Army command and planner of JA25. “The LOAC is extensive and can be complex, so we pull out the ten most critical concepts that every soldier, right down to the private, should know before they go into combat.”

US, Kenya prepare for the unimaginable CBRN threat

NAIROBI, Kenya – Imagine two scenarios. Scenario 1: Dawn breaks over the capital of Kenya. A U.S. diplomat leaves his residence for the embassy. After a 20-minute ride, his car arrives at the gate and he enters. He sits in his office to begin the day when, all of a sudden, he hears an explosion through the open window. It seems far off; it is not a large explosion. He thinks maybe it was just a car accident, but minutes later he smells something bitter in the air. His eyes water, sirens blare and a U.S. Marine Corps security detail enters his office wearing gas masks. They put a mask on him and tell him they must evacuate immediately because a deadly chemical is blowing over the compound. Scenario 2: U.S. intelligence receives credible information that radiological material is being loaded onto a ship in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa. Time is short and no one knows which ship, only that it will embark soon, possibly bound for the hands of violent extremists or other state actors looking to imperil the U.S. homeland. There is no time to send U.S. security forces to intercept the package. Instead, the Kenyan Disaster Response Battalion (DRB) mobilizes and arrives at the port. Using tactics and tools gained from years of training with the United States, they find the ship and the weapon, placed there by a violent extremist organization, and prevent its departure, defeating the threat to America and its citizens. Similar scenarios have happened before in other areas of the world.

36th Annual International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference and First Chaplain Africa Forum held in Brussels

The U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and Belgian Ministry of Defence, in partnership with U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) and U.S. Indo Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) Chaplain Directorates, hosted the world’s largest annual meeting of senior military religious leaders at the 36th Annual NATO & Partner International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference (IMCCC) in Brussels, Belgium, January 27-31, 2025.

Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord

US, Kenya prepare for the unimaginable CBRN threat

36th Annual International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference and First Chaplain Africa Forum held in Brussels

Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord

US, Kenya prepare for the unimaginable CBRN threat

36th Annual International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference and First Chaplain Africa Forum held in Brussels

United States Africa Command

New mobile hospital enhances Ugandan military capacity

Soldiers from Uganda People’s Defence Force trained on setting-up, taking down, and operating a UN-standard level-2 hospital, at the Uganda Rapid Deployment Capabilities Center in Jinja, Uganda, May 6-17, 2019.