USAV Worthy Crew Receives COVID-19 Vaccine

Courtesy Photo | Fire department personnel receive a socially-distanced safety briefing from Mike Turner, right, captain of the U.S. Army Garrison-Kwajalein Atoll range safety vessel USAV Worthy, near a screening checkpoint at Point Loma Naval Base in San Diego, California in February 2021. (Photo courtesy of Bess Buchanan)  

MARSHALL ISLANDS

02.20.2021

Story by Jessica Dambruch 

U.S. Army Garrison-Kwajalein Atoll

Members of the USAV Worthy crew received the first doses in their COVID-19 vaccine series in early February with support from Department of Defense medical personnel in California.

The ship arrived at Point Loma Naval Base in San Diego, California in December for annual scheduled maintenance after more than 20 days at sea. At the time, California cases were reported as “skyrocketing” past 106,000 cases in two days,” wrote Bess Buchanan—a Kwajalein physician assistant traveling with the Worthy—in an email to the Kwajalein Hourglass.

“[California had] less than one percent of ICU bed capacity remaining in most hospitals due to the ravages of the pandemic on the local population,” wrote Buchanan, of the ship’s arrival. “The Washington Post reported, ‘If California were a country, it would be among the world leaders in new coronavirus cases, ahead of India, Germany and Britain.’ This is what we were reading just days before we docked at Point Loma Naval Base in San Diego. Needless to say, morale was at a low point!”

As the reality of life in a pandemic epicenter sank in, the crew practiced social distancing and pandemic safety protocols. They set up a pier-side checkpoint and sanitization station to keep the ship COVID-free and to screen all individuals before boarding.

“We were on our learning curve, but too much was at stake,” said Buchanan, “and we really wanted to get it right to prevent any possible crew exposure or illness.”

Buchanan said she felt lucky healthcare workers were prioritized in the Department of Defense Population Schema for vaccine distribution. She was the first Worthy crewmember to complete the entire two-shot vaccination series and received her first dose at Naval Medical Center San Diego four days after the Worthy arrived. She received her second dose on Jan. 25.

Point Loma Naval Base is one of the few initial distribution sites that would provide the vaccine to DOD uniformed service members, retirees, dependents, civilian employees and select DOD contract personnel, Buchanan said. It was hoped the crew would be able to receive both doses while in port.

Buchanan had begun working to coordinate the effort even while at sea. After several phone calls, messages to the 3rd Fleet medical staff and face-to-face meetings, the crew received good news: They qualified for vaccination as personnel preparing to deploy to locations outside the U.S. Their scheduled vaccination date was set for Feb. 4.

“We were sent the vaccine schedule and we suddenly realized how huge this operation really is,” Buchanan said, of the DOD vaccination effort. That week alone, 2,159 vaccine doses were set for distribution at five sites.

For Buchanan, obtaining the green light for crew vaccinations was good news.
“We were amazed and ecstatic,” she said. “Frankly, we felt as though we had won the lottery.”

On Feb. 4, members of the Worthy crew received their first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a Point Loma medical facility. They are scheduled to receive their second dose Feb. 25.

The crew is doing well, Buchanan reports. Some have experienced sore arms and one rash but are taking over-the-counter medication to treat these mild symptoms.

Buchanan calls the chance to receive the vaccine while away from Kwajalein “a precious gift indeed.”

• Date Taken: 02.20.2021
• Date Posted: 02.20.2021 01:56
• Story ID: 389464
• Location: MH