Photo By Staff Sgt. Mikaley Kline | U.S. Air Force Maj. Laura Oats, with the 628th Medical Group based in Charleston,...... read more read more
ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA – “You’re headed to St. Paul, Minnesota.”
The notice was sent to an anxiously awaiting group of nurses and medical professionals. They had been placed on 96-hour alert for a little over two weeks.
“This means we needed to be packed and ready to go anywhere in the country within 96 hours,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Laura Oats, a registered nurse with the 628th Medical Group stationed in Charleston, South Carolina. “Then, we found out we were headed to St. Paul.”
Two weeks earlier, the team learned they would likely serve on a COVID vaccination mission at the request of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. They were not certain how many from their medical team would be tasked, nor did they know what part of the country they would go.
The Type 2 Community Vaccination Center in St. Paul administers up to/approximately 3,000 vaccines per day and targets the most vulnerable segments of the population. The vaccine is free to every Minnesotan over age 16.
“I actually found out about the mission while I was conducting a training assignment,” shared Oats. “My mom and her husband were with me at the time and we were planning a short trip to Myrtle Beach when I got the call. Oh well, we rolled the dice and it didn’t work out this time, but the beach will still be there after this mission is finished.”
This is a common theme among service members; they are trained to be ready at a moment’s notice to go wherever the country needs them. This was not the first time Oats was called for service. Less than a year ago, she was on a different COVID mission.
Whereas the current operation is about providing vaccinations, last year her unit was placed on orders to conduct COVID testing.
When testing was standardized last year, Oats provided diagnostic COVID tests for many pilots and crews prior to their flight missions to other countries. This was extremely challenging because different countries had various national policies concerning COVID and the testing requirements were constantly changing.
One of the challenges Oats faced was how fast overseas units needed COVID results for those arriving from the U.S. “Meanwhile, missions never stopped,” said Oats. “Worldwide operations had to keep going, so we kept testing people.”
The 628th Medical Group performed different types of testing at their on-base lab, primarily using a polymerase chain reaction, or PCR test. This took about an hour to produce a result. The lab also utilized an antigen test, which only took about 25-30 minutes to run. Additionally, they had the option of utilizing other labs, but the quick turn-around-times usually dictated using the on-site lab for faster results.
While Oats and her team busily tested for COVID, scientists around the worked tirelessly to produce a vaccine for the virus. Several months later, she received orders for the current mission. This time, she joined approximately 140 Airmen from 24 bases across the country to provide this vaccine to the St. Paul community.
“It was kind of crazy!” said Oats. “I found out I was going to St. Paul and I thought, ‘Wow, I lived there for 13 years. I still own a home about ten minutes away from the hotel. I have friends and family there.’”
“If I could choose anywhere in the country to deploy, being deployed somewhere comfortable, where friends are waiting…I would choose here,” she added. "It’s like coming home.”
Despite the comfort of deploying to a familiar place, Oats must still abide by normal military regulations such as maintaining a low profile on social media. She did not tell many friends that she’s on mission here, saying she really didn’t know how available she would be.
“There’s a lot going on in this area at the moment,” Oats said. “It’s not just about the COVID vaccination mission. There are curfews and lockdowns due to protests throughout the twin cities. Our leadership wants us to be safe, so we stay pretty close to the hotel and vaccination site.”
“Either way, I really hope to see my mother sometime in the next couple weeks,” shared Oats. “If even for a quick lunch together, it would be great.”
Oats readily admits that her mother helped inspire her to go into the nursing field. Her previous degree was in veterinary sciences, but nursing appealed to Oats in multiple ways.
“It sounds so corny,” she explained. “A little over 10 years ago, I was at a time in my life when I started to question myself. I was already grown-up and had a career, but I began to wonder, ‘What am I doing with my life!?’”
“I wanted to be part of something bigger,” she added. “What do I want my tombstone to say about me?”
With hopes of making a positive contribution, Oats decided to attend nursing school at Jamestown College in North Dakota. Her mother retired there as a nursing instructor and inspired Oats to follow in her footsteps.
“My mother taught nursing at Jamestown for almost 30 years,” said Oats. “So, it’s like I’m coming full circle being so close to her.” Jamestown is about five hours away from St. Paul.
“I basically went to nursing school to get into the Air Force,” said Oats. “This was my driving force. I knew that I wanted to be a medical officer in the Air Force.”
Shortly after joining the military, Oats deployed to Afghanistan in 2011 as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. She performed casualty evacuation, or patient transport for those wounded in battle. Oats explained that it was great working with NATO partners on a joint mission back then, and the current mission has some similarities.
“It’s interesting working with different people from across the country,” Oats explained. “We share ideas and perspectives and come up with best practices for what will work in various situations.”
Others agreed.
“We’ve only been here a few days, but I’ve already gotten to know people from several bases,” shared Maj. Ray Mamuad, with the 62nd Medical Squadron in Joint Base Lewis-McChord based outside Seattle, Washington. “But what’s awesome is that everyone is doing what they were trained to do, despite never having worked with each other before.”
Along with FEMA, the Minnesota Department of Health and emergency management teams, Oats also works in St. Paul with service members from the U.S. Army, the Army National Guard and the Coast Guard. A member of the U.S. Space Force also works here – further proof this mission is truly a whole-of-government effort.
Aside from friends and family in the area, Oats shared about one more reunion of sorts.
“It took us a minute to figure it out,” she explained. “But I knew another Airmen’s face and that we had met before. It turned out we worked together at Royal Air Force Lakenheath [based in the United Kingdom] a few years before I transferred to Charleston. Who knew we would meet again years later, thousands of miles away and on a completely different mission!?”
The St. Paul vaccination center has been operational for nearly a week and has already administered 10,000 vaccines to the local population. There is no doubt the center is bringing people together, and not only to receive a vaccine.
Words like “isolation,” “self-quarantine” and “social distancing” have become part of the everyday vocabulary over the last year. However, this vaccination mission reinforces how working together towards a common goal can bring people together again.
“I want to make a difference and feel like I did something for my country, for people,” said Oats.
Whether testing for COVID or administering a life-saving vaccine, Oats is living proof that people can work together to make a positive difference, and a shared goal can unite people.
| Date Taken: | 04.18.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 04.22.2021 13:09 |
| Story ID: | 394297 |
| Location: | ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, US |
| Hometown: | CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 77 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, An Air Force Medic Comes Full Circle Amid COVID Challenges, by MAJ Joe Legros, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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