History

Our ancestral unit (the 8169th U.S. Army Hospital) was activated at Camp Beale, California on 20 Dec 42. In Jan 44, the 8169th sailed for New Guinea, saw action in the Philippines, and was part of the invasion fleet targeted for the Japanese mainland (which fortunately was never needed). On 2 Sep 45, most of the unit's equipment was lost when LST 1106 sank in a typhoon off the coast of Japan.

On 26 Sep 45, the unit (now the 128th Station Hospital) accepted the surrender of the Japanese Military Hospital, Sagami- Ono and became the first U.S. Army Hospital established in Japan. The 128th admitted its first American patient on 13 Oct 45.

The hospital served with distinction during the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. In 1966, it was enlarged to 500 beds and designated as U.S. Army Hospital, Honshu. In that capacity, it served as the Army Burn Center of the Far East. The hospital received a Meritorious Unit Commendation for its service during the Vietnam era.

In Nov 79, the hospital facility closed and relocated to become an ambulatory care clinic on nearby Camp Zama. In 1983, the unit was re-designated as MEDDAC Japan (MEDDAC-J) and now serving as the sole Army medical treatment facility in all of Japan, responsible for supporting the US Army Japan and US Army Garrison Japan.

In Mar 99, MEDDAC-J received its first full three-year accreditation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

MEDDAC-J operates as a freestanding ambulatory care facility and is part of the Pacific Regional Medical Command with headquarters at Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, Hawaii proudly serving and supporting the United States Army Japan community.

On April 14, 2006, the USAMEDDAC-Japan primary care clinic was formally renamed as the BG Crawford F. Sams US Army Health Clinic. BG Sams worked closely with the Government of Japan post-World War II that resulted in unprecedented and unsurpassed reforms in public health history and more specifically in Japan.