Members of the Department of Defense tour Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn, Nov. 29 in preparation for the nursing assistance they are providing. The 23-person team began actively working with patients Dec. 3. The team consists of 14 critical care nurses, four doctors, and two respiratory therapists. They are one of about 24 medicals teams like this deployed throughout the country.
Medical help for patients, support for staff during COVID-19 surge begins today
DEARBORN – Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn, welcomed 23 military medical personnel from the U.S. Army Dec. 3, sent by the Department of Defense to assist during the health system’s fourth COVID-19 surge.
The team was assigned after a recent request by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for help.
The team officially began its 30-day assignment of actively working with patients Dec. 3. A small advance team met with Beaumont, Dearborn, leaders and staff Nov. 29 to discuss logistics. The medical team assisting in Dearborn participated in orientation and training Nov. 30 and Dec. 1.
The team’s focus will be the hospital’s ICU units, which are experiencing a large influx of COVID-19 patients as well as non-COVID-19 patients. Currently, Beaumont Health is caring for more than 600 COVID-19 patients across the health system, including more than 100 at Beaumont, Dearborn.
“We know this is a challenging time,” said Lt. Colonel Stephen Duryea, the officer in charge of the DOD’s Medical Response Team. “This highly trained medical team with experience in critical care situations is eager to help care for patients and support the Beaumont team.”
The team was most recently deployed to Tupelo, Miss., two months ago, and includes: 14 critical care nurses, four doctors – two internists and two trained in pulmonary critical care medicine — two respiratory therapists, and a three-member command and control team.
“Thank you for being here,” said David Claeys, co-chief operating officer of Beaumont Health and president of Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn and Farmington Hills. “It’s a huge help for our team and we all appreciate your assistance as we experience another surge.”
“We are very glad to assist our community when they need emergency medical care,” Beaumont Health CEO John Fox said. “This federal team will allow our busy, busy staff to continue to provide compassionate, extraordinary care as our COVID-19 numbers rise and we continue to experience staffing challenges, like many other hospitals across the country.”
The assistance is part of the U.S. Army North COVID-19 Hospital Support, a joint military operation which began in August. Since then, approximately 435 military medical personnel from the U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy have been helping treat COVID-19 patients alongside civilian health care providers in hospitals in 13 states.
Members of the Department of Defense tour Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn, Nov. 29 in preparation for the nursing assistance they are providing. The 23-person team began actively working with patients Dec. 3. The team consists of 14 critical care nurses, four doctors, and two respiratory therapists. They are one of about 24 medicals teams like this deployed throughout the country.