18th Medical Command

Last updated
18MedicalCmdSSI.jpg
Shoulder sleeve insignia
Active1967 - present
CountryUnited States
BranchFlag of the United States Army.svg  United States Army
Garrison/HQFort Shafter, Hawaii
Motto(s)Trust - Labor - Courage
Commanders
Current
commander		MG E. Darrin Cox
Notable
commanders		LTG James B. Peake
Insignia
Distinctive unit insignia 18MedicalCmdDUI.jpg

The 18th Medical Command is a US Army medical deployment support command, which provides contingency medical support to United States Army, Pacific. The headquarters was located on the Korean peninsula from 1984 until 2008, when it was relocated to Fort Shafter, Hawaii.

Contents

Originally activated at Fort Lee, Virginia in 1967 as the 18th Medical Brigade, it was the U.S. Army's third field army level medical headquarters activated, following the 7th Medical Brigade in 1965 and the 44th Medical Brigade in 1966.


Lineage and Honors

Lineage

Constituted 10 May 1967 in the Regular Army as Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 18th Medical Brigade [1]

Activated 18 August 1967 at Fort Lee, Virginia [1]

Inactivated 16 December 1970 at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland [1]

Redesignated 16 August 1984 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 18th Medical Command, and activated in Korea [1]

Reduced to Zero Strength 15 October 2008 in Korea [1]

Transferred, less Personnel and Equipment, 16 October 2008 to Fort Shafter, Hawaii and assigned to United States Army Pacific [1]

Honors

Campaign Participation Credit

Decorations

  • Army Superior Unit Award, streamer embroidered "2003" [2]

Insignia

Shoulder sleeve insignia

Shoulder Sleeve Insignia, 18th Medical Command 18MedicalCmdSSI.jpg
Shoulder Sleeve Insignia, 18th Medical Command

Description

On a shield, oblong in shape and arched at both sides, 3 inches (7.62cm) in height and 2 inches (5.08cm) in width, within a 1/8 inch (.32cm) white border a field of blue having a white-edged maroon sword throughout the center with point down and entwined about the blade two white zig-zag bands in the form of a figure eight. [3]

Symbolism

The sword is in the color maroon, suggestive of human blood, and symbolic of the medical needs of an army. The zig-zag bands are in pure white to suggest bandaging and the antiseptic requirements of medical practice; by entwining the sword they signify the support provided by the organization. [3]

Background

The shoulder sleeve insignia was originally approved for the 18th Medical Brigade on 25 October 1967. It was redesignated for the 18th Medical Command on 16 February 1984. (TIOH Drawing Number A-1-469) [3]

Distinctive unit insignia

Distinctive Unit Insignia, 18th Medical Command 18MedicalCmdDUI.jpg
Distinctive Unit Insignia, 18th Medical Command

Description

A device of gold color metal and enamel 1 1/8 inches (2.86cm) in height consisting of a gold sun of eighteen rays bearing in center a maroon Maltese Cross all centered on a gold disc scored with concentric rays and enclosed by a maroon motto scroll bearing the words "Trust, Labor, Courage" in gold letters; over the lower half of the scroll a wreath of gold oak leaves entwined by two white serpents their tails crossed in center, their heads raised at either side and facing outward. [3]

Symbolism

The gold sun and maroon cross are symbolic of the support provided by the organization. The Maltese Cross is the symbol of the Knights of Malta, also called Knights Hospitaler, Knights of St. John and Order of the Hospital of St. John, which grew out of a hospital established in the 11th Century to care for pilgrims in the Holy Land. The eighteen rays of the sun allude to the unit's numerical designation. The serpents are a reference to the Staff of Aesculapius of the Medical Corps insignia and the oak is a symbol of strength. [3]

Background

The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 18th Medical Brigade on 29 February 1968. It was redesignated on 16 February 1984 for the 18th Medical Command. [3]

History

Commanders

ImageRankNameBranchBegin DateEnd DateNotes
ColonelCharles R. KinneyMS18 August 196714 March 1968First Medical Service Corps officer to command a medical brigade
ColonelJack W. GwinMS15 March 196819 June 1969 [4] Assumed command when brigade was transferred to Fort Meade, less personnel
ColonelWilliam R. Knowles [4] MS19 June 1969 [4] 2 July 1970 [4]
US Army Colonel Leigh F Wheeler.jpeg Colonel Leigh F. Wheeler, Sr. [4] MS3 July 1970 [4] 16 December 1970 [4] Colonel Wheeler assumed command of the 44th Medical Brigade when the 18th Medical Brigade was reflagged as the 44th. [4]
Inactive17 December 197015 August 1984
Richard T Travis.jpeg ColonelRichard T. Travis [5] MC16 August 1984 [5] June 1985 [5] Commanded 8th Medical Command (Provisional) from June 1983 to 15 August 1984. Also commanded 7th Medical Command in Germany. Retired as a Major General. [5]
US Army Colonel D. G. Tsoulos.jpeg ColonelD. G. TsoulosMCJune 1985 [5] June 1987Later commanded 3rd Medical Command during Operation Desert Storm
Portrait of Thomas Edwin Bowen, Brigadier General, United States Army.jpg ColonelThomas E. Bowen [6] MCJune 1987 [6] June 1988 [6] Retired as a Brigadier General [6]
Portrait of U.S. Army Lt. Gen. James B. Peake The Surgeon General-Commander, U.S. Army Medical Command.jpg ColonelJames B. Peake [7] MCJune 1988 [7] July 1990 [7] Later served as 43rd Surgeon General of the United States Army and Secretary of Veterans Affairs [7]
Portrait of James Janorious James, Brigadier General, United States Army.jpg ColonelJames J. James [8] MCJuly 1990 [8] December 1991 [8] Retired as a Brigadier General [8]
Major General Harold Timboe.jpg ColonelHarold L. Timboe [9] MCDecember 1991 [9] August 1993 [9] Later commander 44th Medical Brigade, Brooke Army Medical Center, and Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Retired as a Major General. [9]
US Army Colonel Elmer Michael Casey Jr.jpeg ColonelElmer Michael Casey, Jr.MCAugust 1993 [9] July 1996 [10]
US Army Brigadier General Daniel F Perugini.jpeg ColonelDaniel F. Perugini [10] MCJuly 1996 [10] July 1998 [10] Retired as a Brigadier General [10]
ColonelJames KirkpatrickMCJuly 1998 [10]
ColonelEdward C. HuyckeMCJuly 2002 [11]
US Army Brig. Gen. Phillip Volpe.jpg ColonelPhillip Volpe [11] MCJuly 2002 [11] July 2004 [11] Retired as a Major General [11]
US Army Colonel Brian D. Allgood.jpeg ColonelBrian D. Allgood [12] MCJune 2004 [12] 23 June 2006 [13] Killed in action in Iraq, 20 January 2007. Namesake of the Brian D. Allgood Community Hospital, Yongsan Garrison [12]
ColonelJames Gregory Jolissaint [13] MC23 June 2006 [13] June 2008
US Army Maj. Gen. Jeffrey B. Clark.jpg ColonelJeffrey B. Clark [14] MCJune 2008 [14] 15 October 2008 [1] Assumed command of the 65th Medical Brigade when the 18th MEDCOM moved to Hawaii. Retired as a Major General. [14]
Relocated to Hawaii [1] 15 October 2008 [1] 16 October 2008 [1] Transferred less personnel and equipment [1]
Lieutenant ColonelChad BowersMS16 October 2008 [1] July 2009
US Army Colonel Erin Edgar.jpeg ColonelErin EdgarMCJuly 2009June 2011
ColonelJudith BockANJune 20113 July 2013
ColonelBrett Ackerman3 July 201310 July 2014
ColonelAnn SammartinoAN10 July 20143 March 2018 [15]
US Army Colonel Edward H. Bailey.jpeg ColonelEdward H. Bailey [15] MC3 March 2018 [15] 20 October 2018 [16] Retired as a Brigadier General [15]
MG Tracy L. Smith.jpg Brigadier GeneralTracy L. Smith [16] MS20 October 2018 [16] July 2020 [16] USAR Officer on extended active duty [16]
Michael L. Place (5).jpg Major GeneralMichael L. PlaceMCJuly 2020June 2022
US Army Maj. Gen. Paula C. Lodi.jpg Major GeneralPaula C. Lodi [17] MSJune 2022July 2024 [17]

Organization

Fort Meade, Maryland, 1 January 1970

Korea, 23 June 2006

References

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army .

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "18th Medical Command SSI, Lineage, and Honors". Army Medical Department Center of History and Heritage. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  2. ↑ "Department of the Army General Order 2009-08, Subject: Individual and Unit Awards, dated 29 December 2009" (PDF). Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "18th Medical Command Shoulder Sleeve Insignia and Distinctive Unit Insignia". The Institute of Heraldry, United States Army. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 "Annual Historical Supplement, 44th Medical Brigade, 1970" (PDF). Army Heritage and Education Center. 1 April 1970. Retrieved 28 January 2025.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Official General Officer Biography of Major General Richard Thomas Travis, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 31 March 1994
  6. 1 2 3 4 Official General Officer Biography of Brigadier General Thomas Edwin Bowen, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 31 May 1993
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Lieutenant General James B. Peake". Office of Medical History. U.S. Army. January 3, 2008. Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Official General Officer Biography of Brigadier General James Janorious James, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 31 January 1995
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Official General Officer Biography of Major General Harold L. Timboe, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 1 August 2002
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Official General Officer Biography of Brigadier General Daniel F. Perugini, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 1 December 2004
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Official General Officer Biography of Major General Phillip Volpe, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 1 June 2013
  12. 1 2 3 "Brian D. Allgood". Fallen Heroes Prohect. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 18th Medical Command & 121st General Hospital Change of Command Program, Outgoing Commander COL Brian D. Allgood / Incoming Commander James G. Jolissaint. Location: Knight Field, Yongsan Garrison, Seoul, Republic of Korea. Date: 23 June 2006
  14. 1 2 3 Official General Officer Biography of Major General Jeffrey B. Clark, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 1 July 2019
  15. 1 2 3 4 Official General Officer Biography of Brigadier General Edward H. Bailey, United States Army General Officer Management Office, 1 October 2024
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 Official General Officer Biography of Major General Tracy L. Smith, United States Army General Officer Management Office, July 2023
  17. 1 2 Official General Officer Biography of Major General Paula C. Lodi, United States Army General Officer Management Office, July 2024
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