Dr. Marilyn Pattillo, associate professor of clinical nursing at The University of Texas at Austin, has been named an operations officer and chief nurse for a humanitarian assistance mission in Haiti and Colombia.
The “Continuing Promise 2010” trip is sponsored by Project Hope in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense. Health care teams will work ashore and return to the hospital ship, USS Iwo Jima, for lodging. Pattillo will lead a team of 12 medical personnel members on a one-month rotation (July 17-Aug. 15) of the mission.
“The collaboration and team work between a private organization and the U.S. government, in our case, the Department of Defense, is what makes Project Hope unique,” said Pattillo. “Nurses, in particular, are important to the mission as we provide a diverse knowledge base, assessment skills and a strong commitment to public welfare.”
Project Hope, an international health education and humanitarian assistance organization, works in more than 36 countries around the globe providing health care and health education to people in need. The medical team for the missions is comprised of physicians, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and psychologists.
Pattillo served more than 20 years in the Air Force Nurse Corps, both on active duty and reserve.
She developed and taught two Disaster Nursing elective classes in summer 2002 and 2003 in response to the events of Sept. 11, 2001.
She also helped lead School of Nursing volunteer efforts after Hurricanes Katrina and Ike.
