Moses Lake native battles coronavirus on the front lines with the U.S. Navy

SAN DIEGO — Moses Lake High School grad and Hospitalman Apprentice Julia Gutierrez-Carsten has witnessed the COVID-19 pandemic up close as she works alongside her U.S. Navy comrades to battle the virus.

As a hospital corpsman, Gutierrez-Carsten was forced to step up during the pandemic as many higher-ranked people were deployed or asked to assist elsewhere. Being asked to do things she didn’t think were possible has helped her grow in confidence in her role with the Navy.

Gutierrez-Carsten said she decided to join the military because of the number of her family members who had served as well. While there weren’t any ROTC programs to join at the time, she said she did join the criminal justice program at Columbia Basin Technical Skills Center.

From high school, boot camp took her to the Great Lakes Naval Training Center north of Chicago, Illinois. After basic training, she said, she went to complete her accession training, or A School, at the Medical Education and Training Campus at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston. In joining Navy Medicine, Gutierrez-Carsten became a part of the most decorated career field in the Navy, according to an article published by Navy Office of Community Outreach.

As someone who had spent most of her life in a small town in Washington, she said, the relocation was an adjustment.

“It’s been pretty crazy, a lot of moving around,” Gutierrez-Carsten said. “I’ve only lived in Moses Lake my whole life, so I was kind of shocked when I was moving state to state. But other than that, everything else was good. My mom kept me well disciplined, so that was nothing new.”

Currently, Gutierrez-Carsten is stationed in San Diego, California, where she works at the Naval Medical Center. She said she didn’t plan on pursuing the field she’s currently in, but that she’s enjoyed it so far.

Working primarily with general surgery, she said, her role includes assisting surgeons during operations with things they might need, preparing IVs, training for mass casualties and learning along the way.

“I like it a lot. A lot of helping surgeons work on other active-duty members, just basically being the right-hand man,” Gutierrez-Carsten said. “But since the pandemic, it’s obviously changed with us having to step up a lot.”

When the coronavirus first struck, Gutierrez-Carsten said things were very hectic, as young junior sailors were asked to take on leadership roles. Not liking to tell people what to do, she said, she was forced to adapt quickly.

“When I was told this, I was kind of caught off guard because I was always the quiet kid, and so I thought it was going to be awful,” Gutierrez-Carsten said. “But, I think we all stepped up and did a good job with that.”

Being forced to step up will be a benefit in the long run, Gutierrez-Carsten said. She said many of the higher-ranked individuals have seen the junior sailors’ ability to lead, leading to many of them being promoted faster.

Seeing the coronavirus in effect firsthand, she said, it’s disappointing that so many people still don’t see it as an issue.

“When you’re working at the hospital and see tons of patients just so sick, it’s really sad that people aren’t believing what they’re seeing on social media, thinking it’s not true,” she said. “And they’re not in the hospital seeing all these patients coming out, passing away. It’s really unfortunate.”

Gutierrez-Carsten said it still feels different being surrounded by so many people who come from all over, after growing up around the same people her whole life. She said growing up in a smaller town has helped her in her work to connect better with people.

“Being from a small town, treating everyone like family, it’s really helped here because people kind of listen better when you treat them as your brothers and sisters,” Gutierrez-Carsten said.

Moving on from her current command post, she said, she’s hoping to move into something on the front lines, in the field alongside the U.S. Marines. She said she heard a lot of great stories from her A School instructors that motivated her to pursue the same journey.

Gutierrez-Carsten said she was supposed to come home to Moses Lake and visit this summer but was unable to, due to the pandemic. She said she’s eager to get a chance to see and visit with her family again. Being a part of the military and following in the footsteps of her family members makes her feel very honored to be in the position she’s in, she added.

“I love going to work every day knowing that I’m doing the best for my country, out there serving like my other family members have,” Gutierrez-Carsten said. “I’m lucky that I got to be a part of it.”

Casey McCarthy can be reached via email at cmcarthy@columbiabasinherald.com.