U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administers COVID-19 Vaccines in the Republic Of Palau

Photo By Solomon Navarro | Heather Shannon, a nurse with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services administers a vaccine to a Palauan community member March 11. COVID-19 remains a global challenge that no nation can face alone – our strong network of alliances and partnerships is critical to combating this virus. The U.S. Army and TF Oceania, in partnership with HHS, U.S. Embassies, and other partners, stands ready and prepared to operate responsibly in Oceania.  

PALAU

05.10.2021

Story by 1st Lt. PHILIP REGINA 

Task Force Oceania

KOROR, Palau –– The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
(HHS) are currently in Republic of Palau assisting the nation’s Ministry of
Health to administer COVID-19 vaccines to the local population.

"The team is here to augment Palau"s MOH vaccination POD at the
National Gymnasium. We are a small contingent of a larger trauma critical
care team consisting of 200 clinical and non-clinical personnel,”
said Phil Nix, the team commander for the HHS trauma critical care team.
“Our primary mission is to respond to public health emergencies and natural
disasters. This past year, however, we have been taking care of critical
COVID-19 patients in the U.S.”

The ROP remains one of the few countries in the world with zero COVID-19
infections. For the HHS team, this mission is a welcome departure from the
missions they have been executing this past year.

"We have been deploying to hot spots in the U.S. that have been stretched
to their limits fighting COVID-19. Up until now we have been seeing the
sickest of the sick COVID-19 patients, many of whom were fighting for their
lives on ventilators,” said Cecily Wang, an HHS surgeon. “Palau is uniquely
COVID-19-free, and we want to ensure it stays that way. We want to
vaccinate as many people as possible to ensure the people of this country
do not experience what we"ve seen during our missions in the U.S.” she
said.

"In addition to vaccine administration, we will also conduct knowledge
exchanges with the Palau"s MOH to discuss lessons learned from our
experiences in the U.S. to ensure the local MOH is better prepared for
anything that may happen in the future,” added Wang.

It takes a coordinated effort from all levels of government to ensure Palau
remains COVID-19-free.

"When the COVID-19 pandemic started around January 2020, the MOH
was able to stand up our emergency operations center (EOC) and started
implementing point of entry screening to prevent the arrival of COVID-19 in
Palau,” said Gaafar Uherbelau, MOH EOC Deputy Incident Commander.
“We also cancelled all flights from areas of concern. Suspending these
flights prevented COVID-19 from reaching our shores. Implementing these
measures took cooperation from all levels of government.”

Uherbelau acknowledges the effect COVID-19 has had on the local
economy but stressed the importance of safety.

"The MOH prioritizes the health of Palau"s citizens first. We will always
advise the strictest strategies to prevent the arrival and community
transmission of COVID-19. We understand that restrictions have had an
immense impact on the economy, but transmission and spread of COVID-
19 would only further exacerbate current economic issues,” said Uherbelau.

"Palau is truly blessed to have such a good relationship with the U.S. unlike
other Pacific island countries who are currently struggling to get enough
COVID-19 vaccines to their people. With the assistance of the U.S., we will
be able to vaccinate 80% of the population,” said Uherbelau.

COVID-19 remains a global challenge that no nation can face alone – our
strong network of alliances and partnerships is critical to combating this
virus. The U.S. Army and TF Oceania, in partnership with HHS, U.S.
Embassies, and other partners, stands ready and prepared to operate
responsibly in Oceania.

• Date Taken: 05.10.2021
• Date Posted: 05.10.2021 16:24
• Story ID: 396033
• Location: PW