Marqeis Sparks  |  Health.mil

August 31, 2010

Year-round, the Military Vaccine (MILVAX) Agency works to ensure that all active duty service members, as well as Guard and Reserve forces, are properly vaccinated against preventable diseases. MILVAX’s efforts are an essential component of military readiness, and help keep uniformed personnel prepared at all times.

Dating back to the Revolutionary War, smallpox outbreaks were a major problem for the military, as well as the general public. After the smallpox vaccine was developed, mass vaccinations proved to be a key to maintaining physical readiness. They would efficiently immunize thousands of service members at a single location, and in a short period of time. In some cases, thousands of vaccinations could be administered in less than a day.

“In a 15-minute time span, we can push about 200 to 250 soldiers through our immunization lines, have them documented, cleared, and out the door,” said Chin Wang, MILVAX regional analyst for the Southern Regional Medical Command. “For the Seasonal Influenza Vaccine Program, DoD’s goal is to vaccinate 90 percent or more of all uniformed personnel by December 1, and last year we were at 87 percent at Fort Gordon after one day.”

As a regional analyst, Wang provides education on military vaccination programs, up-to-date immunization policies, and outreach programs to the various health care systems in the Southeast U.S. and Puerto Rico. Military immunization policy follows the national immunization standard, and adds certain deployment-specific vaccination campaigns.

Last year Wang assisted the Preventive Medicine Staff at Fort Gordon, Ga. in coordinating a mass seasonal influenza vaccination program that successfully vaccinated 8,500 people in 8 hours. The medical team set up screening tables to first check attendees for possible contraindications, and then, if medically cleared, placed them in the “shot line” to get their vaccination. The entire process, including the shot, took only a few minutes. This year, Wang hopes the medical team can immunize the 11,000 people currently at Fort Gordon with the same level of success and efficiencies as last year’s program.

Officials also attribute coordination and sufficient resources as being critical aspects of running a successful mass immunization program. There have been instances where program locations failed to receive the vaccine delivery, or lacked the necessary supplies or proper staff, which led to scheduling conflicts and a need to reorganize the entire operation. Because active duty military units typically have full time training and operational duties, setting up another mass vaccination date can take a month or longer in order to gather attendees at one location at the same time.

To promote public preventive health, veterans and beneficiaries also have access to military immunization programs and vaccine information.

“A mass vaccination program that is conducive and centrally located makes it easy for all the military family population and veteran beneficiaries to get the immunizations they need,” said Cornelius Rowe, regional analyst, II Marine Expeditionary Force, MILVAX. Rowe is the regional analyst for the Camp Lejeune, N.C., area and other facilities in the surrounding region. “The military immunization program is a joint effort from all of the services, so training is important that we are all on the same accord and we can operate together.”

Rowe reported that multiple mass seasonal influenza vaccination campaigns were conducted at Camp Lejeune, to include the Naval Hospital, Base Exchange, Base Housing Community Center and DoD schools. Cooperation and partnerships are critical in order to successfully plan and coordinate a mass vaccination program. The Health Promotions Department within the Public Health Directorate at Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune developed partnerships with other command directorates, the base exchange and the DoD school system. A collaborative effort between the organizations to promote and execute the program allowed military families and veterans in the area to get up-to-date vaccinations at a single location. DoD school systems conduct similar exercises for children and beneficiaries at military bases across the U.S. and outside the Continental U.S.

Overseas, at U.S. military installations in the Pacific Region, Japan and Korea, vaccination program coordinators work with MILVAX regional analysts to facilitate mass vaccination exercises and update immunization policies at their prospective locations. MILVAX also provides support for vaccination programs and policy education in Hawaii. Military bases in Europe run similar mass vaccination programs to those stateside, although on a smaller scale.

“One of the real advantages of mass vaccinations is that it is training for a pandemic,” said Lance Golder, MILVAX regional analyst, Pacific Region. “Back in 2003, when the avian influenza was breaking out, there was not much talk about mass vaccinations. Coverage has since increased, especially with the H1N1 threat, and now people know what the routine is, who to call, and what kind of facilities and supplies are needed in case the real thing happens.”

Health Care [News]  |  prevention   MILVAX   vaccines   influenza