The U.S. Navy USNS Comfort hospital ship is on its fourth visit to Panama, as part of a five-month medical assistance mission to support countries in the region that respond to the Venezuelan humanitarian crisis.

The Ministry of Health (MINSA) coordinates the medical mission with the participation of local medical professionals, governmental organizations, NGOs, educational institutions and volunteers. The hospital ship will perform around 120 surgeries onboard, to patients preselected by the Ministry of Health, and will attend 500 patients per day in two care centers in Colón from August 7 to 12 where they will provide general medical services, dental and optometry. The mainland care centers will be located in the Regional University Center of the city of Colón and in the Dr. Augusto Samuel Boyd School in Buena Vista, Colón.

In addition to Panama, this year's USNS Comfort deployment includes stops in Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Jamaica, Peru and Saint Lucia.