FORT HAMILTON, New York –
The nationwide COVID-19 vaccination effort continues to build momentum, and as the availability of vaccine supplies increases, the need for trained personnel to administer doses to communities also continues to grow. To help meet that demand, U.S. Army Capt. Jerome Ferrin decided to volunteer to support the U.S. Army Garrison Fort Hamilton vaccination clinic.
Originally from Morenci, Ariz. and a graduate of Brigham Young University, Capt. Ferrin commissioned into the Army Nurse Corps 11 years ago, and has served as a medical-surgical nurse with overseas tours in the Republic of Korea and Europe. Capt. Ferrin currently serves as a healthcare recruiter with the U.S. Army Recruiting Command’s New York City Healthcare Recruiting Center at Fort Hamilton, N.Y.
“Being away from the front lines of the war on COVID was rough. This provides me an opportunity to assist in the fight against COVID without taking significant time from my recruiting responsibilities,” Ferrin said. “The post asked the company commander if we had medical professionals to help, and I had let my command know that if there were service opportunities I wanted to assist.”
The Fort Hamilton Garrison Command and Keller Army Community Hospital coordinated the efforts to provide immunizations to Soldiers, the civilian workforce, and mission partners at the Fort Hamilton Armed Forces Reserve Center.
“This vaccine is an important effort for the way forward to protect our people, our families, and the communities where we live and work,” said Col. Craig Martin, Fort Hamilton Garrison Commander. “We are aligned with the priorities for vaccinating our population, which began with our front-line healthcare workers in our military medical treatment facilities and first responders over the past couple of weeks.”
Prior to working at the vaccination site, Ferrin underwent training from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on COVID vaccine information and the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System. The clinic site delivers the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, serving nearly 400 doses a day. “People generally wait less than five minutes, and seem very positive. Social distancing measures are well-adhered to and masks are worn always,” said Ferrin.
“I want people to understand that the vaccine is safe and effective in combating a very real pandemic. I hope both civilians and Soldiers will contribute to the health of our nation through the vaccination program,” said Ferrin. “We keep this world safer every day through readiness. Sometimes we forget, but our everyday readiness is key to deterrence.”