Grissom dentists participate in humanitarian mission Published Dec. 15, 2005 By SrA Roberto Modelo 434th ARW Public Affairs Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind -- Scorching temperatures, unforgiving mosquitoes, and a different culture all put meaning into the Air Force core value, service before self, for two Grissom Medics. Maj. Craig Wisler, a dentist with the 434th Aerospace Medical Squadron and Senior Airman John Dietz, a dental technician with the 434th Aerospace Medical Squadron recently completed a tour with Joint Task Force Grenada. Altogether the exercise was composed of 30 service members. The Airmen linked up with their Army counterparts in the two-week exercise that took them to Grenada, and the islands of Petit Martinique and Carriacou. “When we got there we were met by the army commander that was in charge of the whole mission,” Major Wisler said. He personally took us to our base camp and was very helpful.” After arriving at the base camp, the Airmen started setting up shop for what would be a daunting task of taking care of more than 2,000 patients. The task proved even more demanding when they found out that they would not be working with all the dental equipment they used at their home station. “There wasn’t the usual dental equipment you’d find in the dental clinic,” Airman Dietz said. “the Dental procedures had to be conducted with the dental instruments.” Tasked with the challenge of overcoming their environment and working with few dental tools, the Airmen pressed-on with the treatment. “Our mission there was to extract teeth, if needed and to make sure that the people of the region received some dental education,” the major said. The task force sent out flyers and broadcasted information about the assistance to the local community, so everyone was ready to be seen. The Airmen assisted many different parishes while they were there. The parishes on the island are like counties here in the U.S. To get out to the islands of Petit Martinique and Carriacou, the Airman relied on the assistance of the Army’s landing craft utility, or LCU. These freight-like boats ferried the Airmen from island to island. “After making the trip to the different parishes we noticed that everyone there had severe gum disease and tooth decay because of their diet,” Major Wisler said. The diet was an issue in the region due to the over consumption of fruits and candy. After making their rounds, the Airmen’s mission was accomplished. “We had a great time there. We were able to learn from each other during the mission,” Major Wisler added.
