General Recognizes Red Hill Clinic Personnel for Medical Support After 2021 Fuel Release [Image 6 of 6]

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Bill Soliz, director of Defense Health Network Indo-Pacific, recognizes medical providers at the Red Hill Clinic, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Honolulu, Hawaii, on June 6, 2024, for their contributions following a November 2021 jet fuel release that exposed the community to contaminated water. From left to right, U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Nan Nankivil, U.S. Air Force Maj. Isabel Hung Wan, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Freddy Rivera, Brig. Gen. Soliz, and U.S. Navy Lt. Cdr. Latoya Collier and Cdr. Kayla Horton. “Not many people think of it as an opportunity, but this was an opportunity for the medical field to step up during an emergency and support the community,” said Soliz.

U.S. Navy Cdr. Kayla Horton, left, receives a challenge coin from U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Bill Soliz on June 6, 2024, at Red Hill Clinic, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Honolulu, Hawaii, for providing medical support following a November 2021 jet fuel release that exposed members of the community to contaminated water. Horton is a family nurse practitioner and serves as the primary care provider at Red Hill Clinic, in addition to her duties as the director of health services for Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command Pearl Harbor. Born in Seoul in the Republic of Korea, Horton was adopted and raised in Catlin, Illinois. Soliz is the director of Defense Health Network Indo-Pacific.

Horton said, “I think the Red Hill Clinic plays an important role in rebuilding trust with the community. My role is to listen and acknowledge their experiences in the wake of Red Hill and facilitate access to specialty care if needed. Most patients I’ve seen in the last two months just want to ensure that the exposure is documented in their health record and that they are in a long-term registry so they and their families will continue to have medical support in the future, especially as they prepare to (transfer) off island.”

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U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Nan Nankivil, left, receives a challenge coin from U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Bill Soliz on June 6, 2024, at Red Hill Clinic, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Honolulu, Hawaii, for providing medical support following a November 2021 jet fuel release that exposed members of the community to contaminated water. Nankivil serves as the primary corpsman at the front desk and has played a pivotal role in greeting, checking in patients, providing direct care with Red Hill Clinic providers. The Cocoa Beach, Florida, native said, “I feel that I helped quell a lot of anxieties especially with nonactive-duty patients, in relation to the Red Hill water situation. I am happy to calm anxious patients and to educate patients in relation to the situation and health effects.” Soliz is the director of Defense Health Network Indo-Pacific.