MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- In March 2020, the world came to a halt due to COVID-19. The Air Force had to quickly change operations and adapt to the dynamic nature of a pandemic environment.
In order to properly support the DoD’s lines of efforts towards COVID-19, protecting people, ensuring mission readiness and supporting the whole-of-nation response, the medical professionals at the 42nd Medical Group stepped up to the challenge with tactfulness and ingenuity.
The 42nd MDG has the unique mission of supporting the Maxwell-Gunter community as well as their Air University mission partners. From large-scale screening, testing and contact tracing for thousands of Air Force ROTC field training cadets, Officer Training School trainees and all other Air University in-residence students, to smaller-scale drive-thru examinations, routine check-ups and normal medical operations, the 42nd MDG has gone above and beyond their scope of typical duties.
Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Stephen W. Wilson recognized the achievements of the 42nd MDG by paying a special visit to the medical professionals who made significant impacts to COVID-19 relief efforts.
“Nobody expected this global pandemic. There was no playbook. What's helped us get through it is a bunch of wickedly smart and innovative Airmen,” Wilson said. “We, at the Department of Defense level, are listening to our Airmen and working to remove barriers standing in the way of their success.”
One of these innovative professionals was Master Sgt. Simone Moonsammy-Robinson. Moonsammy-Robinson developed a plan to make the packaging and shipment of COVID-19 tests more efficient and standardized. The process was sent to the United States Air Force Medical Service and is now being implemented as a best practice by all USAF medical technicians who are unable to run the COVID-19 lab results within their own installation. The heroic efforts made by Moonsammy-Robinson and many other medical professionals at the 42nd MDG have helped the Air Force as a whole in their fight against the virus.
Wilson stated that he has been greatly encouraged by the innovation of our Airmen, “We have some great, smart people that are going to help us work through these challenges. I’m confident that our Airmen are going to be able to fight through this virus.”