[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 176 (Thursday, November 17, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2089-E2090]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  PAYING TRIBUTE TO THE SURGEON GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY AND 
 CHIEF OF THE NAVY'S BUREAU OF MEDICINE AND SURGERY, VICE ADMIRAL ADAM 
          M. ROBINSON, JR.'S 34 YEARS OF SERVICE TO OUR NATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. C.W. BILL YOUNG

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 17, 2011

  Mr. YOUNG of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Vice 
Admiral Adam M. Robinson, Jr. for his extraordinary dedication to duty 
and service to the United States of America as the 36th Surgeon General 
of the United States Navy and Chief of the Navy's Bureau of Medicine 
and Surgery. Vice Admiral Robinson will retire as the Senior Healthcare 
Officer in the United States Navy and the principle medical advisor to 
the Secretary of the Navy, Chief of Naval Operations and Commandant of 
the Marine Corps. His military service spans across more than three 
decades of active military duty to the United States Navy and the 
Nation.
  A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Vice Admiral Robinson was 
commissioned into the Navy through the Armed Forces Health Professions 
Scholarship Program after graduating with a Doctor of Medicine degree 
from Indiana University, School of Medicine. In 1978, Vice Admiral 
Robinson was assigned to the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda 
for the very first time of many in his superb career. While assigned 
there he completed his residency in the area of general surgery. After 
his assignment in Bethesda, Vice Admiral Robinson was forward deployed 
to the United States Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, Japan. He was then 
selected as a ship's Surgeon on the USS Midway during his first duty at 
sea. After completing various operational assignments, Vice Admiral 
Robinson attended the University of Illinois School of Medicine, 
Urbana-Champaign, for a fellowship in colon and rectal surgery at the 
Carle Foundation Hospital. After his fellowship he was again assigned 
to the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda to head the Colon and 
Rectal Surgery Division. While at Bethesda, he was again deployed as a 
ship's surgeon for the USS John F. Kennedy and the USS Coral Sea.
  He became a Medical Director for the first time in his career in 1994 
at the Naval Medical Center Portsmouth after serving and earned his 
Master's in Business Administration from the University of South 
Florida. In 1999, while serving as the Fleet Hospital Jacksonville 
Commanding Officer, Robinson commanded a detachment of the fleet 
hospital as for a medical contingent to Joint Task Force Haiti 
(Operation New Horizon/Uphold Democracy). In August 1999, Robinson 
reported to the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery as the director of 
Readiness and was selected as the principal director, Clinical and 
Program Policy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
Health Affairs. Vice Admiral Robinson was assigned as the Commanding 
Officer United States Naval Hospital, Yokosuka, Japan from September 
2001 to January 2004. In July 2004, he returned to the National Naval 
Medical Center at Bethesda as the Commander. In 2007 Vice Admiral James 
A. Robinson was

[[Page E2090]]

chosen as the 36th Surgeon General of the United States Navy and 40th 
Chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery.
  An accomplished and published academic, Vice Admiral Robinson holds 
fellowships in the American College of Surgeons and the American 
Society of Colon and Rectal Surgery. He is a member of the Le Societe 
Internationale de Chirurgie, the Society of Black Academic Surgeons, 
and the National Business School Scholastic Society, Beta Gamma Sigma. 
He holds certification as a Certified Physician Executive (CPE) from 
the American College of Physician Executives.
  Vice Admiral Robinson has been instrumental in preparing the United 
States Navy for the merger of the National Capitol Region's major 
health care facilities. He oversaw the planning, construction and 
execution of the new Joint Medical Facility and ensured that best 
practices of the Navy and other services were preserved throughout the 
transition. Vice Admiral Robinson was also never afraid to be an 
outspoken opponent of policies and issues from the merger that would 
sacrifice care for Service Members of any service. Without his 
foresight and wisdom throughout the process, the new National Military 
Medical Center at Bethesda would not be the shining medical facility 
model it is today for our Service Men and Women and their Families.
  Throughout his career, Vice Admiral Robinson has demonstrated 
expertise in medicine that ranks him among the very best in the world. 
However, I would say his most shining achievements have been his 
exceptional care for our Nation's most important treasure, our wounded 
Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines, throughout the wars in Iraq and 
Afghanistan. Bethesda's renowned reputation as the gold standard of 
care for wounded Service Members improved throughout his tenure and 
will be the lasting legacy of the 36th Surgeon General of the Navy.
  The United States Navy, the Department of Defense and the Nation will 
dearly miss one of its most respected and valued leaders as Vice 
Admiral Adam M. Robinson leaves active duty. We will all miss his 
humility, his selflessness, his candor and his integrity. When history 
looks back at this leader and his legacy it will be clear that he saved 
countless Service Members lives with his policies and daily practices.
  Mr. Speaker, it has been a pleasure to work closely with Vice Admiral 
Robinson over the last several years of his long and decorated career. 
On behalf of a grateful Nation, I join my colleagues today in 
recognizing and commending Vice Admiral Adam M. Robinson for a lifetime 
of service to his country. For all he and his family have given and 
continue to give to our country; we are in their debt. We wish him, his 
wife Yuko, all the best in his retirement.

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