Photo By Staff Sgt. Orlando Corpuz | Tech. Sgt. Alvin Turla, 154th Medical Group aerospace medical service specialist...... read more read more
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It's not your average drive-thru. There are no cheeseburgers or servings of fries. You can't order any milkshakes and you can't request a super-sized beverage. There's no combos to consider; they don't even have menus. No, the only thing they dish out at this drive-thru is a healthy serving of immunity.
Immunity in the form of the flu vaccine that is, as154th Medical Group Airmen 'served-up' doses of it at drive-thru vaccinations held during the Hawaii Air National Guard's October and November drill weekends.
For many of the Hawaii Air National Guard's nearly 2500 Airmen, the flu shot typically involves processing through queues at or inside the med group's facilities and offices. This year, however, with pandemic mitigation efforts such as physical distancing at the forefront, a different way to accomplish the annual requirement was needed.
"This year, what we decided to do was a flu drive-thru," said Maj. Wendy Umipeg-Wurtz, 154th Medical Group chief nurse. "Members can stay in their own vehicles while waiting in line and they can get their vaccines safely from us without ever having to step out of their cars."
Holding the drive-thru in the open spaces and roadways, adjacent to the HIANG medical facilities, offered medical personnel ample room to operate efficiently while adhering to strict COVID-19 mitigation practices.
Airmen pulling up to the medical group proceeded through a vehicle line where a team of medical personnel conducted pre-shot health evaluations. Once the pre-shot screenings were complete, those fit to proceed advanced to the final station where aerospace medical service specialists administered the shots to biceps exposed drivers through their windows.
"It was a great idea; I thought it was perfect actually," said Master Sgt. Paul Tan, 154th Maintenance Squadron accessories NCO-in-charge. "Everybody went through pretty fast. I didn't know what to expect, but I thought it was effortless and efficient after going through it. We should think about doing more things like this."
Primarily targeting HIANG Oahu-island based drill-status Airmen, the drive-thru was just one of the unique methods used to accomplish the vaccinations. Through the month of December, mobile medical teams deployed to different HIANG units located throughout the Hawaiian Islands to vaccinate additional Airmen.
According to the CDC, the flu vaccine has been shown in research studies to be the best way to reduce flu-related illnesses and the risk of severe flu complications. While COVID-19 pandemic prevention has forced many units to rethink how they conduct operations, requirements and standards have not necessarily changed.
"We've really had to take a look at our processes to see if there was a different way we could do things," Umipeg-Wurtz said. "For the flu shot requirement, the drive-thru, as well as the mobile teams, has allowed us to maximize the number of Airmen we can vaccinate while still sticking to pandemic mitigation efforts."
Though operating in unprecedented times, as of December, the 154th Medical Group was still able to ensure more than 90 percent of HIANG airmen have received this year’s flu vaccine.
| Date Taken: | 12.02.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 12.02.2020 19:03 |
| Story ID: | 384115 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HI, US |
| Web Views: | 90 |
| Downloads: | 5 |
This work, Hawaii Medical Airmen conduct drive-thru flu vaccinations, by SSgt Orlando Corpuz, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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