EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, California -- Members of the 412th Medical Group began administering the COVID-19 vaccine to first responders and medical personnel from Edwards Air Force Base at the Airman Family Readiness Center, January 16.
The 412 MDG personnel vaccinated health care providers, health care support, and emergency and safety personnel within the 412th Test Wing based at Edwards AFB and AF Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif.
“We received the vaccine on the (Air Force Material Command) family day but did not want to delay getting our first responders and front-line medics vaccinated. We asked for medic volunteers to come in on the weekend to vaccinate personnel from base fire, police, and medical units,” said Lt. Col. Duane Robinson, Chief of Aerospace Medicine, 412th Medical Group.
While limited quantities of the vaccine are arriving, the DoD has prioritized personnel into different phases, which is based off a national prioritization plan. The process of providing the vaccine to the entire Edwards population could span over multiple weeks.
“Within this tiered roll-out, our first allotment will cover all of our Phase 1a members, and even within this first allotment we will continue to move through the DoD phases if vaccine remains available,” said Capt. Nicholas Singh-Miller, staff pediatrician, 412th Medical Group. “The vaccine is voluntary. Even with the vaccine, we will still need to keep-up our social distancing and mask wearing for some time. However, it feels like there is a light at the end of the tunnel, knowing that the more people that get vaccinated, the less transmission and serve disease we will see in our community.”
To manage the immunization scheduling, Edwards AFB medical planners are using a web-based ticketing platform called Eventbrite. Those next in line to receive the vaccine, based on the priority schema, will receive an email link from an official source that will invite them to make an appointment to get vaccinated.
“When beneficiaries use Eventbrite to schedule a time to get the vaccine it means they will probably not need to stand in a long line,” Stated Staff Sgt. Annel Vega-Villa, flight medicine technician, 412th Medical Group. “This of course will help physical distancing and keep everyone safe.”
For more information COVID-19 vaccines, visit https://health.mil. For the latest Edwards AFB COVID-19 information, visit www.edwards.af.mil/coronavirus.