USAFE medics see 250, find possible cases for study Published April 11, 2007 By Capt. Jennifer Lovett USAFE/PA VOLTA, Ghana -- For seven hours, the team of six Air Force medics, working side by side with Ghanaian military doctors, worked out the patient flow kinks and were able to see 250 patients in the jungle village of Taviefe Tuesday. The medics are in Ghana for a weeklong joint medical mission providing care to locals on Lake Volta as part of a U.S. Navy leishmaniasis study. Air Force Capt. Aaron Johnson, dentist from Lajes Field, Portugal, treated more than 20 patients that required pulled teeth. "I didn't see as many (patients) as I thought I would," he said. "But working in the bare conditions wasn't as hard as I thought either. Tomorrow should be easier." The sunlight stopped work at approximately ten minutes before the clinic lost its electricity due to the mandated energy-share program that the region employs to conserve resources. "For the first day, I'm pretty happy with the results," said Air Force Capt. Paul Puchta, general surgeon from Ramstein Air Base, Germany. The optometry section saw nearly 90 percent of the patients and according to Air Force Col. Paul Young, team lead from Ramstein Air Base, Germany, at least 80 percent walked away with adaptable eyewear -- an invention that uses silicon and air to refract the lenses convexly or concavely and provides eyesight up to a negative six prescription. Patients filled the makeshift waiting area that resembled a covered garage before the team arrived at 8 a.m. but were not seen until after 10 a.m. because work centers, treatment rooms and a pharmacy had to be established and organized first. Almost everyone who showed up was seen by a doctor and anyone who made it through triage but was unable to be seen due to the light was promised a top slot today.