Photo By William Jones | A Belmont University nursing student answers a phone call, March 27, at the Department...... read more read more
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Ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes of a pandemic response?
As a full-time photographer/journalist for the Tennessee National Guard the last few months, I have been busier than ever before. The COVID-19 pandemic reared its ugly head in this country and with it came a nationwide response by the National Guard that we have never seen before. Over 50,000 National Guard members were activated at its peak, conducting operations of all shapes and sizes.
In some states, National Guard members set up field hospitals to house COVID-19 patients when local medical facilities reached capacity. Nationwide, the Guard has been utilized for delivering food, Personal Protective Equipment, and testing supplies to those who need it most. Here in Tennessee, the National Guard has teamed up with the Department of Health to administer virus testing at over 30 drive-thru testing sites across the state. By June 9, the Tennessee National Guard had tested over 100,000 citizens for the virus.
I have seen firsthand the great work that has been done out in the community by guard members and medical personnel all over the state, but I wanted to get a better understanding of what goes on behind the scenes of a large-scale activation like this.
I spoke with Maggie Hannan, the Community Relations Officer for the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, and she explained how the Tennessee National Guard is working together with TEMA and the Department of Health to try to limit the effects from the pandemic.
“We are all part of a Unified-Command Group,” said Hannan. “Specifically, TEMA’s role is to support local jurisdictions, while facilitating resources and information from the federal side to the local side.” TEMA operates as a liaison between federal and local governments, providing resources and assistance to local agencies that need it.
On March 23, Gov. Bill Lee established a COVID-19 Unified Command, a joint effort between TEMA, the Tennessee Department of Health, and the Tennessee Military Department to streamline coordination across these agencies. The Command makes it much easier to coordinate, plan, and respond to the pandemic.
“The structure of the Unified-Command Group has been used at various joint headquarters such as the Combatant Commands and at national level Joint Chiefs of Staff,” said Maj. Gen. Jeff Holmes, Tennessee’s Adjutant General. “It’s incredibly useful to bring different organizations together to ensure a unified effort when dealing with a problem or situation, and everyone can make informed decisions based on all information available from the different groups.”
According to Holmes, the structure’s uniqueness is that it allows organizations, like the Department of Health and the Military Department, to work together and learn from each other. They each have a critical role in fighting the pandemic, but very different cultures.
“The Unified-Command allows for collaborative creative solutions that may not be considered if either organization planned separately,” said Holmes. “One of the group’s most important tasks is to provide informed recommendations to the Governor so he can make the best decisions possible.”
As these response decisions are made, they are acted on by the appropriate organization to turn the Governor’s plans into reality on the ground. But what role does the Tennessee National Guard plan in this?
Capt. Michael Boatright is an Assistant Domestic Operations Officer for the Tennessee National Guard. He works inside the Joint Emergency Operations Center, where command and control is administered at the state level during a National Guard activation.
When you walk into the JEOC for the first time, it’s a lot to take in. Picture Times Square in New York City, with screens covering the tables and walls showing everything from weather reports, maps, and accountability charts. It can seem a bit overwhelming, but it’s actually a well-oiled machine of an operation.
“Here in the JEOC we are conducting operations to facilitate the National Guard response for COVID-19,” said Boatright. “When TEMA sends a request, it is processed here, and we put a plan in place to execute that mission.”
So, TEMA receives requests for support, whether it be for supplies or for manpower from the National Guard, and those requests are processed through the JEOC. Those resources are then assembled, and those plans are put into motion.
However, this isn’t a typical National Guard mobilization. Unlike the deadly tornadoes that ravaged middle Tennessee in early March, this is a health crisis, requiring cooperation from the Department of Health, as well.
The DoH has played many roles during the COVID-19 pandemic. Seeing as it is a public health crisis, the DoH has been an intricate part of the planning and execution process of combating this virus. DoH workers are out at testing sites and medical offices, teaming up with the National Guard to test almost half a million Tennesseans as of the end of May. DoH officials are also working behind the scenes, answering calls in a call center that was established at Joint Force Headquarters in Nashville.
Pete Phillips is a pharmacist for the DoH and has been working at the call center to help disseminate important information to Tennesseans.
“We were taking over 300 calls a day at one point,” said Phillips. “We brought in volunteers, nursing students from local colleges and some National Guard members to make sure we can answer every call and help inform our neighbors.”
Working in a joint environment is a different, but positive experience, explained Phillips.
“We have a great relationship with the Guard and with TEMA,” said Phillips. “Everyone has been extremely professional and communicating well, so everyone’s doing a great job.”
Other agencies have also taken a big part in the COVID-19 response like the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. On June 5, Maj. Gen. Robert Whittle, Deputy Commanding General of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, opened a newly-established alternate care facility, which will serve the people of Nashville and the surrounding areas. The U.S Army COE, with the help of the Tennessee National Guard, worked within the Unified Command to seek out, and to construct these alternate care facilities in both Nashville, and Memphis.
Between the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Health, the Tennessee National Guard, and many other agencies, the teamwork I’ve witnessed during this trying time has been a welcome sight.
I’ve spent a lot of time out at testing sites covering the great work the National Guard is doing. There always seems to be a constant: the level of cohesion and teamwork shown by the Guard and their DoH counterparts. Perhaps that is why Tennessee is considered one of the leaders in COVID-19 testing throughout the country.
“Tennessee is the volunteer state, so we never have a shortage of people that really want to help out,” said Hannan. “It’s been really nice to have everyone working together, successfully in such a large-scale, collaborative effort. I think we’ve really been showing our character.”
| Date Taken: | 06.23.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 06.23.2020 13:35 |
| Story ID: | 372662 |
| Location: | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE, US |
| Web Views: | 122 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Unified Command: Inside Tennesssee's Force in the Fight Against the Pandemic, by William Jones, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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