By Darrius Parker, 88th Air Base Wing Public Affairs / Published April 02, 2021
U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Dominic Patel, a Jonesboro, Arkansas, native and Aerospace Medical service member, part of the 88th Health Care Operations Squadron, stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, acts out the vaccination procedure on Airman 1st Class Andrew Trempus, a Tyler, Texas, native and Aerospace Propulsion service member, part of the 35th component maintenance squad, stationed at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, at the state-run, federally-supported Ford Field COVID-19 Community Vaccination Center, March 22, 2021. Both Airmen are currently assigned to the 1st Detachment, 64th Air Expeditionary Group. The exercise covered all aspects of what a community member would experience upon arrival, through the entire vaccination process, at the CVC. U.S. Northern Command, through U.S. Army North, remains committed to providing flexible Department of Defense support to the whole-of-government COVID-19 response. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Andrew Wash, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)
U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Leonardo Coronado Castillo, a Marietta, Georgia, native and Aerospace Medical service member, part of the 88th Medical Group, stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, assigned to the 1st Detachment, 64th Air Expeditionary Group, goes through the entire vaccination procedure during a dry run exercise at the state-run, federally-supported Ford Field COVID-19 Community Vaccination Center, March 22, 2021. The exercise covered all aspects of what a community member would experience upon arrival, through the entire vaccination process, at the CVC. U.S. Northern Command, through U.S. Army North, remains committed to providing flexible Department of Defense support to the whole-of-government COVID-19 response. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Andrew Wash, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)
Dr. Steven Rockoff, member of the Henry Ford Health System and Medical Director for the state-run, federally-supported Ford Field COVID-19 Community Vaccination Center in Detroit, speaks to U.S. Air Force Airmen about operational procedures, March 22, 2021. When open, the center will be able to administer up to 6,000 vaccinations a day. U.S. Northern Command, through U.S. Army North, remains committed to providing flexible Department of Defense support to the whole-of-government COVID-19 response. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Andrew Wash, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio - The 120 Airmen from the 88th Medical Group who departed for a COVID-19 mission in Detroit have been diligent by putting shots in arms.
The team has provided 5,000 vaccines a day, and another thousand have been delivered by mobile vaccination teams, which local health departments and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have supplied.
All doses are scheduled by the Michigan Department of Health. One day last week, there were 300 doses remaining, which allowed vaccines to be given out in less than an hour to any walk-ins.
After announcing the remaining doses on social media, people almost immediately formed a line stretching as long as four blocks outside the community vaccination center at Ford Field, according to 88 MDG officials.
Team leaders said Wright-Patterson AFB personnel on ground have surpassed expectations by drawing six or seven doses from each vial. This allows more people to get vaccinated at a quicker rate.
“Our medics are incredibly proud to be part of this effort to help the city of Detroit and the state of Michigan,” said Col. Christian Lyons, 88 MDG commander, “and these Airmen are so excited to be part of the solution for our nation to effectively move beyond the COVID pandemic.”
Wright-Patt teams have been working 11.5-hour days, with 10 committed to vaccination and the other 90 minutes committed to roll call, setup and cleanup.
The 120 Airmen who deployed joined about 2,700 other military medical and support personnel from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force already supporting vaccination efforts in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
For more information regarding the different deployment teams and community vaccination centers, refer to the FEMA playbook at www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_community-vaccination-centers_playbook_03-12-2021.pdf.