28th MDG wins awards, takes care of Ellsworth personnel

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Denise Nevins
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. --  The 28th Medical Group's recent string of award-winning accomplishments reflects dedication to their mission of providing quality healthcare to Airmen and families, helping ensure readiness in all aspects of their training.

"As the 28th Medical Group, first and foremost, we're about the readiness of the active-duty members, ensuring they're mission capable," said Col. Christopher Dun, 28th MDG commander. "We take great pride in the full aspect of our mission statement by ensuring our Ellsworth Airmen are ready to do their mission at home and abroad, while we also take care of their families."

The 28th MDG is now on its way to being certified under the Joint Commission, an independent, not-for-profit organization that accredits and certifies nearly 21,000 health care organizations and programs in the U.S. Accreditation from the Joint Commission is recognized as a sign of quality that reflects an organization's commitment to meeting certain performance standards.

"The recognition we [the 28th MDG] have received is viewed as an external validation from other organizations," Dun said. "It demonstrates and further validates that we are performing very well as a primary care clinic."

In 2015, the 28th MDG was awarded the Air Combat Command Best Clinic of the Year Award for the second consecutive year, while three individual Airmen were also awarded at the ACC level. In addition, the group won the 2015 Facility Based Healthcare Award from the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States.

"When you take all of the things that we are leading in at the command and Department of Defense level, and put all of those accomplishments on paper saying, 'This is what we do on a day-to-day basis,' it has a compelling impact," Dun said.

However, the accolades and recognition could not be possible without the passion and dedication of the Airmen and civilians working in the 28th MDG.

"Our vision statement as an organization is to be trusted leaders in patient-centered medical care, and the phrase 'trusted leaders' has a lot of meaning behind it," Dun said. "One of the most important things in being a trusted organization is that your people are empowered, all the way down to the lowest level."