After arriving on site, our first sequence of events started with an orientation of the new NHBC Iwakuni and the birthing center. Our on-site team, Mr. Keith Williams (Essentris Systems Administrator) and Mr. Andres Ruiz (Essentris Trainer) led the way, providing us with an end-to-end tour.

Team LOUi’s involvement with the birthing center was highlighted by the advance training, equipment installation and configuration, and first-class technical support.

Although the “Go-Live” date for the birthing center was postponed during our visit, it was very evident that our on-site team had a significant impact on the overall stand-up of the project.

In-house support included installing, configuring, and replacing Universal Data Acquisition Systems; daily coordination with Essentris OEM vendor, Clinicomp International (CCI), regarding open Service Direct tickets; clinic rounds and training for new staff personnel on Essentris content.

Team LOUi has a long-standing relationship with CCI which was highlight by our team’s discussion regarding future support of the birthing center.

The CCI Team, led by Ms. Mary Stringer, was fully engaged with our on-site Essentris Team to provide clarity of a fully functional EHR system. Having the bandwidth to support both Naval Hospital Yokusaka and NHBC Iwakuni was no small undertaking.

As a result, the clinical leadership at NHMC Iwakuni raved about the outstanding support provided Mr. Williams and Mr. Ruiz, noting it required months of planning, coordination, and travel between the two sites.

Even though the “Go-Live” date has not been reset, we applaud our on-site team for their outstanding efforts to date.

The second half of Team LOUi’s Japan visit started with meeting our on-site team at Naval Hospital Okinawa. Mr. Timothy Duckworth (Essentris Systems Administrator) and Mr. Christopher Chapman (Essentris Database Administrator), took the lead with setting up very productive meetings with the CIO, Contracting Officer Representative and Clinical Leadership.

Again, our on-site team received outstanding kudo’s for their support to the hospital.

During our meetings with NH Okinawa, we discussed the re-establishment of our monthly teleconference to maintain and improve communications between the government and Team LOUi.

We met with the Contracting Officer Representative, CDR Espinal, to discuss long-term acquisition strategies to further support NH Okinawa.

We also met with the Chief Information Officer, LCDR Gregory Marty to determine how we could assist with information assurance compliance concerns throughout the Military Treatment Facilities (MTFs). These issues are all vitally important to the medical mission at MTFs worldwide. Team LOUi looks forward to continued collaboration and first class support for our Japan customers.

Finally, what would a trip to Japan be like without experiencing its rich history and culture? Fortunately for us, we had the opportunity to experience both. We visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, home to the infamous Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima, Japan.

There we experienced first-hand the devastation resulting from the atomic bombs dropped in August 1945. Although the main building of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial was under renovation, we paid our respects and visited other sites including the Hiroshima Pond of Peace, the Peace Flame, and the Memorial Cenotaph.

During our visit to Okinawa, Ms Kaori Chapman, owner of CHA CHA’s Japanese Culture Experience and wife of our team-member, Mr. Christopher Chapman, treated us to a wonderful, 5-Star, cultural experience. The ladies dressed in elegant komonos and the men were "suited up" like Japanese Warriors. Needless to say, our understanding of the Japanese culture was truly enhanced by passion displayed by Ms. Chapman and her staff.