Photo By Tech. Sgt. Zoe Russell | U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Patrick Daly, Expeditionary Medical Facility-M cardiologist, poses...... read more read more
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Stamford, Conn.-- It is 11:00 on a quiet Monday morning on the eighth floor of Stamford Hospital Bennett-Medical Center. A small alcove by a window is decorated with serene shades of blue and green, mirroring the water from the Long Island Sound shimmering in the distance.
Occasionally a nurse or doctor quickly walks by, no doubt on their way to assist with a patient. Suddenly, a few military members dressed in their brown and green uniforms come around the corner, reminding everyone this is not a typical Monday.
One military member, Lt. Cmdr. Patrick Daly, a Navy cardiologist, takes a break from his busy schedule of treating COVID-19 patients and settles into a chair by the window. He is dressed in blue scrubs and a black fleece jacket, likely due to the cool spring weather the Northeast continues to bring.
Dr. Daly is a 2005 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences. Prior to COVID-19, he balanced his active duty service at Naval Hospital Jacksonville, Florida, with being a volunteer assistant professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and performing invasive cardiology procedures at Wright Patterson Air Force Base Medical Center, both in Ohio. Little did he know, his experience working in both civilian and military clinical environments would help prepare him to respond to a global pandemic.
As a physician at Naval Hospital Jacksonville, Daly was assigned to the Expeditionary Medical Facility-M (EMF-M), a medical team activated in early April. According to the Navy’s website, U.S. Navy medical personnel assigned to the EMF-M were activated as part of a U.S. Northern Command-led COVID-19 response to support civil health authorities. All personnel assigned to Navy EMFs are trained to provide medical support, such as acute and emergency care and also work with local health authorities to support community needs.
The EMF-M team first traveled to Dallas, Texas, where they set up a 250-bed facility in the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center for COVID-19 patients. Following that mission, they moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where they helped augment another alternative care site. From there, they were sent to Stamford, Connecticut, and were attached to the Urban Augmentation Medical Task Force (UAMTF) 811-1 at Stamford Hospital Bennett-Medical Center to assist with the surge of COVID-19 patients. The UAMTF at Stamford is comprised medical professionals from the Connecticut National Guard, Air Force Reserve, Army Reserve and the Navy.
“The integration has gone incredibly well. We arrived at Stamford Hospital and within 96 hours we were involved in patient care,” said Daly. “I think that speaks to the flexibility of us as a healthcare team, our training, and our desire to work together. The hospital staff have been exceptional. They gave us a clear set of goals and expectations that will help them get through the surge of COVID-19 patients.”
As he sits in his chair near the window, Daly reflects on his travels across the United States and all that he and his team have accomplished together the past month and a half.
“You build a sense of trust amongst each other to fulfill whatever mission is being asked. [The military] is uniquely trained to be able to adapt,” said Daly. “We want to be helpful without being a burden to the system. It has been really important to understand what the local needs are from each community we’ve been asked to assist.”
Between the patients, their families, and the civilian and military hospital staff, Daly said it takes a team effort to ensure COVID-19 patients get on the road to recovery.
The personal connections he and his team have built with their patients have also contributed to a speedy recovery.
“We are here to help communicate to the patient that they are not alone. We try to go that extra mile and help patients understand that we are there for them, even if their families cannot be,” he said. “Both civilian and military nurses, corpsmen, medics and assistants have done extraordinary things making sure these patients are taken care of while also reducing the exposure risk to the patients and the staff.”
Several times throughout the day, “Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles comes over the hospital’s loud speakers, signifying the successful recovery and discharge of a COVID-19 patient. In the hallways, one can hear the cheers and applause by the medical staff as they celebrate another victory.
When asked about what it is like to hear the song, Daly’s eyes immediately lit up and he smiled.
“That’s the best part of medicine,” he said. “That’s why we get into medicine—to see that success. It’s really uplifting for the entire team.”
As Daly prepares to return to work, he reflects on his experience over the past month and a half.
“It’s been a privilege to be a part of this mission and help write the story of adapting a trauma medical support capability to provide a domestic emergency medical response to a pandemic,” he said. “Our medical training allowed us to rise to the occasion in multiple different environments from repurposing a convention center to augmenting a tertiary medical center.”
| Date Taken: | 05.20.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 05.20.2020 23:58 |
| Story ID: | 370473 |
| Location: | STAMFORD, CT, US |
| Hometown: | CINCINNATI, OH, US |
| Hometown: | JACKSONVILLE, FL, US |
| Web Views: | 543 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, COVID-19: A fight across the U.S. for military medicine, by TSgt Zoe Russell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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