The commanding general of U.S. Army units in Italy recognized staff and volunteers at Ospedale San Borolo di Vicenza during a ceremony May 18 at the hospital in Vicenza, Italy.
Maj. Gen. Andrew Rohling, commanding general of U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa headquartered in Vicenza, presented awards to two members of the San Bortolo Hospital care team and two volunteers of the Croce Verde organization for their actions to assist a U.S. Army civilian employee needing extensive support from May to November in 2020.
"I am grateful to the doctors and staff of San Bortolo for their continued support to our American community,” Rohling said after the ceremony. “We appreciate the high quality health care Italian medical professionals continue to provide to our Soldiers and Families and are honored for the great partnership."
According to the award citations, Italian Nurse Monica Ronzani distinguished herself over the course of several months caring for an Army civilian employee while also keeping Army leadership at the military base informed. When the patient’s situation was most dire, Ronzani coordinated for and personally transferred the Army civilian several hundred miles north to U.S. Army Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Landstuhl, Germany. “Ms. Ronzani's untiring commitment, compassion, and initiative were integral to the patient's mental and emotional stability during this very trying time,” the citation stated.
Three other members of the San Bortolo care team volunteered in support of the patient’s transfer to Landstuhl. Dr. Lora Camilla, Mr. Giancarlo Lott and Mr. Andre Palumbo joined Ronzani to transport the patient. According to the award citations, “The team's untiring commitment was instrumental in the transfer of a U.S. Army civilian employee from an Italian care facility to a U.S. Army facility in Germany, during a resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, beginning the patient's eventual return to the United States.”
