Skip to main content

Military Health System

Test of Sitewide Banner

This is a test of the sitewide banner capability. In the case of an emergency, site visitors would be able to visit the news page for addition information.

Army Reserve nurse assists with Federal COVID response in Arizona

Image of Military personnel posing for a picture while driving a truck. Army Maj. Catherine Celeski, an Army Reserve critical care nurse from San Antonio, Texas, mobilized in mid-December 2020 with Army Reserve Urban Augmentation Medical Task Force 328-1 to assist the Yuma Regional Medical Center in Yuma, Arizona. Urban Augmentation Medical Task Forces are examples of U.S. Northern Command’s commitment, through U.S. Army North, to providing flexible Department of Defense support for the whole-of-government COVID-19 response.

Although more and more Americans are receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, a number of military medical professionals are being mobilized to augment hospitals across the nation that continue to have a high number of COVID-19 patients.

Army Maj. Catherine Celeski, an Army Reserve critical care nurse from San Antonio, Texas, is completing an 87-day mobilization with the Urban Augmentation Medical Task Force 328-1 assisting the Yuma Regional Medical Center in Yuma, Arizona. Assets like UAMTF 328-1 demonstrate, U.S. Northern Command's commitment to provide flexible Department of Defense support for the whole-of-government COVID-19 response.

"These patients (COVID-19) are some of the most acutely ill patients I have cared for in my career," said Celeski, discussing her mission experience.

"It has been physically and mentally challenging. What keeps me going, is all the amazing nurses who are doing the same work that I am doing. These patients are a team effort and I have had the honor of working with some awesome, dedicated nurses, respiratory therapists and doctors that have intervened at the highest level to prolong the lives of these patients."

Celeski brought experience in COVID-19 care from her civilian position as a registered nurse with the Veterans Affairs medical system in San Antonio.

"After caring for veterans in the Audie Murphy VA, COVID ICU, in San Antonio, I had experienced the pandemic firsthand," shared Celeski. "I contracted COVID in October 2020 and infected my son and husband. I think with caring for Veterans and then contracting COVID, I have the skills and experience to assist this national effort and provide relief to American people."

Years after departing the Army, while working for the Veterans Administration at the Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago, Celeski decided to return to service.

"I felt the pull to rejoin the military. Even after my 16-year break in service, I felt the connection to the Veterans and wanted to serve as an Army Nurse again, she shared. So, in 2014, she recommissioned in the U.S. Army Reserve.

"It is an honor to serve those Soldiers who sacrificed so much of themselves during their military career. I also wanted to reconnect with other Army Nurses and feel that direct connection to military nursing again."

"Being a part of the Army Reserve is a way I could contribute to the total medical force. The Reserve has about two thirds of all the medical professionals in the Army," explained Celeski. "After a 16-year break in service, I was able to join again and feel the camaraderie I missed and bring all my skills from the civilian job back to the Army team," said Celeski.

As she prepares to return to her civilian career as a registered nurse care manager at the North Central Federal Clinic, Celeski offers some thoughts for all health care workers engaged in the fight against COVID-19.

"Stay strong and stay resilient. I have hope that the immunization brings a slowing of the spread and keeps us safe in our mission to care for these patients of the pandemic."

You also may be interested in...

DHA-IPM 20-004: Department of Defense (DOD) Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccination Program Implementation

Policy

Establishes the Defense Health Agency’s procedures to implement instructions, assign responsibilities, and prescribe procedures for the DHA’s implementation of the DOD’s COVID-19 Vaccination Program.

  • Identification #: DHA-IPM 20-004
  • Date: 6/16/2022
  • Type: DHA Interim Procedures Memorandum
  • Topics: COVID-19

Future of Nursing: Telehealth, More Innovation and Maybe Some Robots

Article
5/13/2022
Second Lt. Nina Hoskins, 81st Surgical Operations Squadron operating room nurse, briefs Col. Debra Lovette, 81st Training Wing commander, and other base leadership on robotics surgery capabilities inside the robotics surgery clinic at the Keesler Medical Center June 16, 2017. (Photo: Kemberly Groue, U.S. Air Force)

The future of nursing is here due in part to changes brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Army Public Health Nurse offers thank you to nurses across Army: Reminder of where we came from

Article Around MHS
5/9/2022
Military personnel on infographic

U.S. Army Public Health Center thanks all Army Public Health Nurses for the hard work and dedication you show to the communities you serve every day. 

How One Military Nurse Persevered Through the COVID-19 Response

Article
5/5/2022
Air Force Capt. Courtney Ebeling, a medical-surgical nurse at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph Family Health Clinic, Texas, was deployed to support the COVID-19 response in Afghanistan in 2021. They administered vaccinations to U.S. citizens, service members, and foreign military members as well as supported the preparation to withdraw from the country. (Photo: Courtesy of Air Force Capt. Courtney Ebeling)

Nurses across the Military Health System have played a vital role in providing routine patient care and meeting the needs of the COVID-19 pandemic.

‘I Love the Intensity’ – One Nurse Recalls Three COVID-19 Deployments

Article
5/5/2022
In 2020, Air Force 1st Lt. Tiffany Parra, an ICU nurse at the 633rd Medical Group, on Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, was deployed to a North Dakota hospital to support a FEMA COVID-19 mission. In the photo, she trains on equipment used for critical patients in a North Dakota ICU. (Photo: Courtesy of Air Force 1st Lt. Tiffany Parra)

Nurses are unique, they follow a calling to care for others. Military nurses do that as well as serve their nation. For Nurses Week, the MHS highlights some of their own.

Pandemic Spotlights the Vital Role of Military Lab Workers

Article
5/2/2022
U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Ashley Solomon, 18th Medical Support Squadron NCO in charge of microbiology, unloads blood samples from a centrifuge at Kadena Air Base, Japan, Jan. 31, 2019. (Photo: Tech. Sgt. Matthew B. Fredericks, U.S. Air Force)

MHS clinical labs produce results.

Helping Your Child to Cope with Grief and Losses Related to COVID-19

Article
4/28/2022
Shirley Lanham Elementary School students perform Taiko drumming during a Month of the Military Child celebration aboard the Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, April 6, 2022. (Photo: Petty Officer 2nd Class Ange-Olivier Clement, Naval Air Facility Atsugi)

Many military children have lost loved ones to COVID-19. How parents can help with the grief.

How to Help Military Children Reconnect After Two Years of the Pandemic

Article
4/25/2022
Airman 1st Class Rocio Romo, Space Launch Delta 30 public affairs specialist, and her son pose for a photo at Cocheo Park on Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, March 25, 2022. During the month of April, we celebrate Month of the Military Child to highlight the sacrifices military children make on the home front while their parents serve the United States. (Photo: Airman Kadielle Shaw, Space Launch Delta 30 Public Affairs)

How parents can help children stressed by more than two years of COVID-19.

COVID-19 Booster Effectiveness Remained High During Omicron Surge

Article
4/18/2022
Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Mary Ashcraft, assigned to the combat ship USS Tulsa, administers a COVID-19 vaccine booster to Aviation Machinist Mate 1st Class Anthony Johnson Jan. 10, 2022, at Apra Harbor, Guam. (Photo: Mass Communication Specialist Petty Officer 1st Class Devin M. Langer, Command Destroyer Squadron 7)

Two new studies of active-duty service members show COVID-19 booster vaccines are effective, but uptake rates in the military community lagged behind the civilian population.

8 Tips to Help Kids Adjust to Change during the New Pandemic Phase

Article
4/15/2022
A parent comforts his child while she receives a pediatric dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at Kadena Air Base, Japan, Jan. 28, 2022. (Photo: Airman 1st Class Anna Nolte, 18th Wing Public Affairs)

Parents should prepare their kids for the new normal of the ongoing pandemic, recognizing that the status of the disease can change quickly as new variants of COVID-19 emerge.

Military Medical Officials Back FY 23 Budget Before Senate Appropriations Committee

Article
4/6/2022
Marines with Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing take precautionary measures by cleaning and disinfecting their hands during field day on Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., March 20, 2020, to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 while continuing to perform mission-essential tasks. (Photo: Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jaime Reyes)

Military Medical officials, including Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Ronald J. Place, Defense Health Agency director, back FY 23 Budget before the Senate Appropriations Committee, March 29, 2022.

How COVID-19 Made the Military Medical Community Stronger

Article
3/21/2022
Image of a service member being treated

Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic has made the military medical community stronger and will help when confronting the next crisis, whether that’s another pandemic, a new conflict or natural disaster

COVID-19 Responses Underscore Importance of Patient Safety

Article
3/14/2022
Every day, patient safety is one of the top priorities for the Defense Health Agency. Patient safety means providing ready, reliable care to service members, veterans, and dependents no matter the circumstances. (Photo: Defense Health Agency)

Patient safety is a topmost concern of MHS, and Patient Safety Awareness Week 2022 focuses on Ready, Reliable Care.

Answering Your Questions About COVID-19 Testing

Article
2/25/2022
Military personnel performing a COVID-19 Test

COVID-19 continues to spread, now as the Omicron variant. Getting vaccinated is the most effective way to protect you and your family from getting seriously ill, getting hospitalized, or dying. You should also make sure you’re up to date with your vaccines. Testing is another important step you can take to protect yourself and others.

Defense Department Announces Distribution of COVID-19 Tests for Military Beneficiaries

Article
2/25/2022
A Soldier assigned to the Connecticut National Guard helps load a shipment of at-home COVID-19 testing kits into a truck at a regional distribution point in North Haven, Connecticut, Jan. 3, 2022. These kits were picked up by representatives from local towns and municipalities to be handed out to their communities.

The Department of Defense will offer at-home COVID-19 tests for military beneficiaries at military hospitals or clinics, on a supply available basis, in the coming weeks.

Page 4 of 27 , showing items 46 - 60
First < 1 2 3 4 5  ... > Last 
Refine your search
Last Updated: May 04, 2023
Follow us on Instagram Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Follow us on YouTube Sign up on GovDelivery