BALTIMORE (NNS) — The U.S. Navy’s surgeon general delivered the keynote address at the 10th Annual World Congress of Society of Brain Mapping and Therapeutics (SBMT), May 13.
Vice Adm. Matthew Nathan, surgeon general of the Navy and chief of the Navy’s Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, encouraged the audience to renew their enthusiasm for exploring medical advances of the future.
“It is my honor to speak to you to reignite your passion for medicine, and in particular neurological disorders and traumatic brain injury,” said Nathan.
Nathan spoke of the challenge the military and our nation faces as our service members are surviving this war at unprecedented rates compared to previous wars due to battlefield advancements in combat casualty care and our moral imperative to take care of them.
“The good news is our Soldiers, Sailors and Marines are surviving at an unprecedented rate,” said Nathan. “The challenge for us is that there is a whole population of people who have suffered traumatic brain injury compounded by over ten years of war. Those veterans are going to saturate our communities, and we need a game-changer in the way we diagnose and treat TBI.”
Nathan noted that what we thought was impossible ten years ago in the realm of medical advancements is now possible, and he reaffirmed his confidence in the attendees to explore medical advancements in molecular diagnosis and molecular genetics.
“We have to figure out the pathways at the bio cellular and molecular levels that will help us determine who is at risk for concussive injury. We’re going to get to that point, and you are going to take us there,” said Nathan. “I know you are going to figure it out. So thank you in advance for moving the dial, even just a little bit, and making a difference in someone’s life.”
The annual world Congress of SBMT is a multi-disciplinary forum designed to facilitate cross-pollination and dissemination of technological and medical advances and scientific discovery. This year’s conference “Breaking boundaries of science, technology, medicine, art and health care policy” included continuing medical education sessions, hands-on tutorials, lectures, workshops and exhibits.
As the Navy surgeon general and chief bureau of medicine and surgery, Nathan leads a global healthcare network of 63,000 Navy medical personnel around the world who provide high-quality health care to more than one million eligible beneficiaries. Navy Medicine personnel deploy with Sailors and Marines worldwide, providing critical mission support aboard ship, in the air, under the sea and on the battlefield.
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