Navy Medicine Education, Training and Logistics Command (NMETLC) announced Feb. 8 during an all-hands event the selection of the headquarters Junior and Senior Sailors of the Quarter (SOQ) for the first quarter of fiscal year 2017.

Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Juan Garcia is the Senior SOQ and Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Christopher Peters the Junior SOQ due in large part to their work on a rewrite of Hospital Corps "A" school curriculum October-December 2016.

"I am very proud and appreciative of the continuous hard work and dedication of these two Sailors," said Rear Adm. Rebecca McCormick-Boyle, NMETLC commander. "We train and equip Navy Medicine, and the subject matter expertise and dedication of our staff is vital to our mission success. HM1 Garcia and HM2 Peters are uniquely qualified and tremendously experienced hospital corpsmen, and they are each deeply committed to those we serve and the hospital corpsmen who are in training."

Garcia is the NMETLC division leading petty officer (LPO) for the curriculum management department, responsible for supervising the development of the new "A" school curriculum which includes tests, lesson plans, and performance evaluations. McCormick-Boyle's Flag Letter of Commendation cited Garcia for his subject matter expertise in the initial revision of hospital corpsman basic "A" school curriculum revision, a massive project which will directly impact the professional careers of those entering the Navy's largest rating.

"Your leadership was instrumental in the development of 332 terminal and enabling objectives, 49 performance checklists, 1,660 test questions, 58 lesson plans, and 58 media aids," the letter said.

Still, Garcia said he believes he was selected because of the directorate's performance under short deadlines.

"I believe I was selected because of the amazing work that the Academics Directorate has accomplished for the curriculum development in such a short amount of time," Garcia said.

He said this experience has shown him the importance of enlisted education and training, and how the work they do today will save lives in the future.

"I take pride in knowing my work will be used to teach others the skills and knowledge that might possibly save another person's life," Garcia said. "It's a mission that many are not aware of, but building the ground work of how life-saving skills are taught is essential to ensuring a great foundation is laid for our new hospital corpsmen -- a foundation that will be built upon when they enter the fleet."

Peters is the skills manager for the NMETLC curriculum management department, responsible for collecting pertinent job information from subject matter experts and translating it into knowledge which will be used to develop curriculum for Navy Medicine.

McCormick-Boyle's letter cited his expertise in the Navy surgeon general's initiative to revise the hospital corpsman basic "A" school curriculum.

The letter said, "Your efforts directly resulted in the development of seven lesson plans, 58 PowerPoint presentations, 364 exam questions, and 15 performance check lists."

Peters said whether developing curriculum or treating patients, the key to his success is simple: caring for others.

"The key to being a successful corpsman is having compassion -- just caring for the individuals you are helping and caring about their well-being," Peters said. "The knowledge and skills needed to provide the care will come with the training. The human factor is what you need to do to be successful."

He said it's important in Navy Medicine education and training to understand where one fits into the bigger picture.

"As far as success in the education and training environment, you have to understand the bigger picture and how you fit in as an individual," Peters explained. "It's important to have a conceptual idea that even though you may only be helping create a small part of something, the whole that you are contributing to will affect Navy Medicine worldwide."

McCormick-Boyle said Garcia and Peters both understand the bigger picture, how they fit in, and how their contributions will save lives.

"HM1 Garcia and HM2 Peters are directly and positively impacting our mission, Navy Medicine, and the fleet with the work they do on a daily basis to turn operational requirements into meaningful Hospital Corps training," McCormick-Boyle said. "Their work will ultimately translate to lives saved."

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