Ap Suoi Nghe Medcap DPR/TV/824

Among the most consistent activities by troops of the Australian Task Force in Vietnam is the administration of medical and dental aid to the people in villages and hamlets throughout Phuoc Tuy Province. To this end, doctors and dentists with the major units in the area and in particular the 1st Australian Civil Affairs Unit visit 15 populated centres each week. One of these centres is the re-settlement village of Ap Suoi Nghe, three miles north of the Task Force base at Nui Dat. The village was established as a phase of Operation Ainslie by troops of the 2nd and 7th Battalions in September last year. On this particular medcap the five man civil affairs team was led by the civil affairs medical officer, Major Ray Atkinson of Parramatta, NSW. Main function of teams employed on med or dentcaps is to treat complaints of a minor nature. These are usually skin complaints or cases of malnutrition. The more serious medical cases are diagnosed by the doctor with the team and the patients flown or driven to civilian hospitals at Baria or Vung Tau for treatment or surgery. (Also identified: Capt Murray Taylor; Corporal Paddy Burnan of South Perth, WA; medical officer with CA unit Major Ray Atkinson of Parramatta, NSW)