JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON – (March 25, 2024) – Rear Adm. Guido Valdes, commander, Naval Medical Forces Pacific (NMFP) made an official visit to Naval Medical Research Unit (NAMRU) San Antonio.
During his visit, he toured NAMRU San Antonio facilities at the Battlefield Health and Trauma Research Institute to include the Tri-Service Research Laboratory and hosted a townhall meeting at the Military and Family Readiness Center.
Valdes, who serves as the Chief of Navy Medical Corps, has oversight of 10 Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Commands on the West Coast and Pacific Rim as well as Navy Medicine’s eight global research labs.
Valdes also serves under the Defense Health Agency (DHA) as the director of the Defense Health Network Pacific Rim where he oversees the delivery and integration of healthcare at nine medical treatment facilities (MTF) on the West Coast and Pacific Rim.
According to Valdes, NAMRU San Antonio is unique as it is located in a joint environment.
“In some of the other locations such as Dayton, Ohio, the research laboratories may have one sister service in the area, but here in San Antonio, there is the Army, Air Force, and Navy in the research arena,” said Valdes, who served as the commanding officer of Naval Health Clinic Corpus Christi from 2015 to 2017. “Additionally, NAMRU San Antonio is the only Naval research unit located next to Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC), the Department of Defense’s (DoD) only level-one trauma center which I believe provides them with a significant advantage over the other labs.”
During the townhall meeting, Valdes provided information on the future of Naval Medical Research, the relationship in reference to DHA, importance of communication with the line community, and core funding. Additionally, he presented command coins to three outstanding NAMRU San…
