ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. – Capt. James Reilly, the bioenvironmental engineer flight commander assigned to the 28th Medical Group, received the Military Health Leadership Excellence award for junior non-providers Dec. 2, 2016.
The MHLE award recognizes the exemplary accomplishments by military health care providers who serve with distinction within the Military Health System and display great innovation in the medical field.
“There are two categories, one is for providers which are the actual medical officers touching the bodies for medical purposes and there’s the non-provider,” Reilly said. “While I am a medical professional, I do not deal with patients; as a medical engineer I work more in the realm of preventative medicine.”
Nominees are chosen from each branch of the Department of Defense and the winners are brought to Washington D.C. where the Secretary of Defense presents the award to the winners.
Reilly was one of the four winners recognized.
“Any time you get recognized it’s nice, especially when it’s amongst your peers and to be at the DOD-level, it means a lot,” Reilly said. “Overall, contributing to Ellsworth’s mission is what means the most to me.”
According to Tech. Sgt. Jon Andrew, the bioenvironmental engineering flight non-commissioned officer in charge assigned to the 28th MDG, Reilly being recognized at the DOD-level is a big deal because it’s not common for someone in preventative medicine to receive this type of award.
“Reilly’s performance and record of excellence speak for themselves,” Andrew said. “He helped put our office on the map.”
Reilly says he is extremely proud to be part of the Air Force and the Ellsworth and that he couldn’t have done this without his team.