Page 140 - JSOM Spring 2021

ALMOST ONE-THIRD OF US TROOPS ARE age groups. V-safe’s rapid collection of experiences from vac-
REFUSING COVID VACCINES, OFFICIALS SAY cinated persons provides valuable information that healthcare
providers can use to counsel vaccine recipients about common
More than two-thirds of US Servicemembers offered the reactions and what to expect after vaccination.*
COVID-19 vaccine have opted to receive it—but the high rate
of troops turning it down has lawmakers voicing grave concerns.
WE ARE THE MIGHTY EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW:
ARMY NURSE ON HOW COVID HAS AFFECTED
Speaking before the House Armed Services Committee on
Wednesday, Defense officials, including Air Force Jeff Tali- THE MOS
aferro, vice director for operations on the Joint Chiefs, and Martine Caraballo comes from five generations of military
Steven Nordhaus, director of operations with the National service. She served 10 years in the US Army as a 68W combat
Guard Bureau, said the vaccine acceptance rate for troops is, medic with ASI of M6/LPN. As an Iraq War veteran, she de-
on average, between 66% and 70%. ployed to Iraq in 2009–2010. Ruddy
Cano had many questions for Cara-
Since the beginning of the pandemic, 150,910 US Servicemem- bello, and she provided personal and
bers have tested positive for COVID-19; 21 have died. fascinating answers to “Your career
is a success story to all enlisted who
Defense Department officials have said that the COVID-19 dream of going Green to Gold. What
vaccine will remain voluntary while it is under emergency was it like to become a commissioned
use authorization. That designation is expected to last up to officer and a nurse?” “What new challenges has COVID-19
2 years while the FDA assesses the vaccination’s efficacy and presented to the MOS vs civilian nurses?” “What advice
side effects. would you give to others pursuing a military career in nurs-
ing?” “What can the population do to better support nurses in
The CDC has provided results for their safety monitoring of their mission?” And “Is there anything you would like to say
the COVID-19 vaccine and released the following information to the military audience?”
on February 19, 2021:
From Army Medicine News, 17 February 2021.*
SUMMARY
CENTER FOR ARMY LESSONS LEARNED (CALL)
What is already known about this topic?
Two COVID-19 vaccines have received Emergency Use Au- Director Christopher J. Keller, COL, IN, has the following
thorization for administration in the United States. In preau- message:
thorization clinical trials, local and systemic reactions were
reported; no serious safety problems were detected. Happy New Year! This edition of the CALL Insider
closes out 1st Quarter, Fiscal Year 21, but we have
What is added by this report? included a few “late breaking” publications we
Monitoring, conducted as part of the US vaccination program, completed over the holiday period and posted
indicates reassuring safety profiles for COVID-19 vaccines. in early January. I encourage you to download or
Local and systemic reactions were common; rare reports of order these products for your teams. Our close
anaphylaxis were received. No unusual or unexpected report- relationship with the combat training centers also
ing patterns were detected. touches on another recent development at CALL. In
December, we formally realigned our organization
What are the implications for public health practice? under the Combined Arms Center-Training at Fort
Healthcare providers and vaccine recipients can be reassured Leavenworth. We believe this change will give us
about the safety of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 greater access to, and improve coordination with,
vaccines. Counseling vaccine recipients to expect transient lo- the CTCs. You can look forward to even more prod-
cal and systemic reactions might ease concerns and encourage ucts that will help our force improve warfighting
completion of the two-dose vaccination series. skills in the weeks and months to come. I will also
take this opportunity to once again put out a call
Findings from v-safe monitoring for both vaccines indicate sub- for Soldiers to join the CALL team. We need highly
stantial reactogenicity. More reactogenicity was reported after motivated officers and NCOs to perform duties as
the second dose of Pfizer-BioNTech than the first, particularly military analysts (forward) in billets at Army Service
on the day after vaccination (data on second dose of Moderna component commands, corps, and divisions across
vaccine were not available because of later availability and the the globe. If you are an officer (MAJ-COL) or NCO
dosing interval). These findings are similar to those from clini- (MSG-SGM) and want a job that will be both chal-
cal trials from both manufacturers, in which injection site pain, lenging and rewarding, go to our website to sub-
fatigue, headache, and myalgia were most frequently reported, mit an application. Join a great team that drives
with a higher frequency after the second dose in comparable change for our Army!
*https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-trending/exclusive-interview-army-nurse-on-how-covid-has-affected-the-mos/

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