Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Richard Cody visited Fort Stewart Friday and Saturday, talking with soldiers and family members and speaking at the sendoff ceremony for the Indiana 76th Brigade Combat Team.
Cody told reporters at Warriors Walk, "We need to be very, very proud of our soldiers, especially those from Fort Stewart."
The general said he had visited Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch and other troops of the 3rd Infantry Division about two weeks ago in Baghdad and in operational areas, and he had come to tell people, "how well our soldiers are doing."
Cody came to public attention about a year ago when he labeled the problems in Army outpatient services at Walter Reed "a failure in leadership."
He has been a strong supporter of improvements, such as implementation of the Warrior Transition Units for soldiers needing outpatient care.
He explained that the Army had taken 2,400 people out of its end strength to work with the 9,000 soldiers in WTUs. "We changed the leader-to-led ratio," he explained.
After his talks with soldiers and family members, Cody said, "Each one assured me they are getting the best of care."
In creating the WTUs, Cody said, the Army had to teach a new mission: "to heal, to return to where you're supposed to be.
"Soldiers who had temporary profiles naturally wanted to stay in their units, the units they deployed with. That unsuccessful approach was changed, Cody said, and the WTUs started.
"It took us a while to train for the new mission," he said, "There were some hiccups at first."
The general, who was stationed at Fort Stewart-Hunter AAF during the 1970s and '80s, said the area was "a great place."
Cody told reporters at Warriors Walk, "We need to be very, very proud of our soldiers, especially those from Fort Stewart."
The general said he had visited Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch and other troops of the 3rd Infantry Division about two weeks ago in Baghdad and in operational areas, and he had come to tell people, "how well our soldiers are doing."
Cody came to public attention about a year ago when he labeled the problems in Army outpatient services at Walter Reed "a failure in leadership."
He has been a strong supporter of improvements, such as implementation of the Warrior Transition Units for soldiers needing outpatient care.
He explained that the Army had taken 2,400 people out of its end strength to work with the 9,000 soldiers in WTUs. "We changed the leader-to-led ratio," he explained.
After his talks with soldiers and family members, Cody said, "Each one assured me they are getting the best of care."
In creating the WTUs, Cody said, the Army had to teach a new mission: "to heal, to return to where you're supposed to be.
"Soldiers who had temporary profiles naturally wanted to stay in their units, the units they deployed with. That unsuccessful approach was changed, Cody said, and the WTUs started.
"It took us a while to train for the new mission," he said, "There were some hiccups at first."
The general, who was stationed at Fort Stewart-Hunter AAF during the 1970s and '80s, said the area was "a great place."