FORT SILL, Oklahoma (Aug. 23, 2021) –– The COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic staff at Reynolds Army Health Clinic (RAHC) reached another milestone last week when they administered their 30,000th COVID vaccination to a trainee in the 434th Field Artillery Brigade.
“With the increase of COVID related hospitalizations across the United States due to the Delta variant, it is as important as ever to ensure that everyone who is eligible receives the COVID vaccination,” said Col. Dan Bridon, RAHC commander. “Our COVID Vaccination Clinic has done an outstanding job the past several months, especially with our basic training population, in educating the need for, and administering the vaccines.”
The summer surge for Basic Combat Training has provided both an opportunity and a challenge for the vaccination clinic, the colonel said.
“With the large number of trainees that come to Fort Sill for basic training during the summer from all parts of the United States and the world, our Public Health and COVID testing teams have to remain extra vigilant to ensure that any possible COVID positive trainees are properly cared for to prevent any spread of COVID,” Bridon said. “However, this also provides us with a large population of Soldiers who may not have received their first or second dose of the vaccine and the acceptance rate of our new Soldiers has been very high, allowing us to reach the numbers that we have seen this week.”
The COVID-19 vaccine has been available for all TRICARE Beneficiaries age 12 and up since mid-May of this year.
As cases increase across the nation especially in areas where vaccination rates are low, it has been shown that the Delta variant of COVID-19 is more transmissible, and may result in higher rates of hospitalization among unvaccinated individuals.
“I want each member of our Fires community to make a prudent, informed decision if they are hesitant. It is a matter of relative risk: The extremely small risk of an adverse reaction to the vaccine, compared with the much higher relative risk of serious illness or death from contracting COVID-19 when unvaccinated,” Bridon said. “The most important action you can take to prevent hospitalization and serious illness, beyond personal protective measures like proper hand washing and social distancing, is to choose to get the vaccine today.”
The COVID Vaccine clinic is open for walk-ins Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to noon, with the last patient checked in at 11:30 a.m. each day.
RAHC is only offering the Pfizer vaccine at this time. If you have any questions regarding the COVID vaccine, the Delta variant, or COVID-19, please ask your Primary Care Manager at Reynolds.
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