Theodore Roosevelt Sailors contribute to COVID research

PHILIPPINE SEA

06.10.2020

Story by Seaman Alexander Williams 

USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71)     

NAVAL BASE GUAM (June 5, 2020) – USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) Sailors who have recovered from coronavirus and have met the Navy’s return to work criteria, volunteered to donate plasma beginning May 31, 2020, in an effort to support active duty service members and growing national needs.
The program, known as “Operation Warp Speed,” is a streamlined method for collecting and distributing COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma (CCP) as an investigational treatment for patients with moderate or severe COVID-19 infections. Theodore Roosevelt partnered with the Department of Defense, Military Health System and the Defense Health Agency, who plan to use plasma from Sailors who have recovered from COVID-19 to support the research development of possible vaccines.
“Theodore Roosevelt provides a ready pool of people who could potentially volunteer to donate,” said Capt. John York, Theodore Roosevelt’s senior medical officer. “It’s a way for us to say, yeah we’ve been through something, but here’s how we can help Soldiers and Sailors down the road.”
The DoD plans to collect more than 8,000 units of CCP from recovered service members by September 30, 2020. Collected CCP will be available for treatment of COVID-positive patients with the intent of helping build up sufficient antibodies to combat the virus and the disease, and help patients recover more quickly.
The program does not claim to be a cure for COVID-19, but it is a crucial step in the DoD’s goal of ensuring the health and readiness of all members of the DoD. The more than 211 units of plasma donated by Theodore Roosevelt Sailors will contribute to the overall DOD goal.
“When I heard that Roosevelt Sailors were going to be able to donate plasma for the potential treatments of coronavirus, I immediately volunteered,” said Senior Chief Air Traffic Controller Erwin Sinsay. “It makes me proud to know I am having a direct impact on fighting this silent enemy that has affected so many of us.”
The CCP plan provides a unique opportunity for Theodore Roosevelt Sailors to perform another positive public service in the midst of a global pandemic. With the help of U.S. Naval Hospital Guam and the Expeditionary Medical Facility, the donations that Sailors provided will contribute to the possible treatment therapies.
“The convalescent program is one more way for us to support the bigger picture,” said York. “There is great benefit for medicine and the global community to come out of Theodore Roosevelt’s experience.”
Theodore Roosevelt is the nation’s fourth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier with a crew of nearly 5,000 Sailors who support and conduct air operations at sea. Theodore Roosevelt departed San Diego for a scheduled Indo-Pacific deployment January 17.
For more news from USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), visit www.navy.mil/local/cvn71/

• Date Taken: 06.10.2020
• Date Posted: 06.10.2020 05:39
• Story ID: 371803
• Location: PHILIPPINE SEA