Nebraska Guard Transitions COVID-19

Defense Feature              23rd July 2020 at 5:57 PM

Testing to Civilian Health Care Workers

23rd July 2020//By Army Staff SGT. HEIDI MCCLINTOCK

After months of support, the Nebraska National Guard is transitioning its COVID-19 testing mission to civilian health care workers throughout the state.

As of July 1, full Nebraska National Guard testing teams are no longer activated to provide testing throughout Nebraska, but a small group of soldiers and airmen is still activated to provide training and knowledge to hos pitals for the Test Nebraska campaign. Another small team is supporting the Omaha area.

A man puts on full body protective gear.

''The transition has been going very well,'' said Army Maj. Angela Ling, the coordinator between the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Resources and the Nebraska National Guard. ''The current process is: if a hospital/clinic/health department is interested in running a Test Nebraska site, they contact DHHS, and together they get a contract signed. Once the contract is signed, my team receives the contract, and we call the hospital directly.''

''When we call the hospital, we work out their training needs, test kit, and [personal protective equipment] delivery and scheduling plan,'' Ling added. ''Once these details are solidified, we send an update to the Test Nebraska team to get them loaded into the scheduling system.''

The transition was put in place after several hundred Nebraska National Guard soldiers and airmen were activated in late March to support testing teams that traveled across the state for weeks on end.

Three Nebraska National Guardsmen wearing face masks stand in grass.

''The civilian hospitals are doing a wonderful job with this transition,'' Ling said. ''They are eager to support this need for their communities.''

Over the past few months, the guard testing teams have been able to provide Test Nebraska sites wherever needed, including nursing homes, corrections facilities, meat processing plants, smaller towns and large cities alike.

The teams have helped to collect more than 80,000 samples for testing during the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting 53 counties and all 19 health departments.

''It's been a great honor for the governor to entrust his confidence in Nebraska National Guard soldiers and airmen to provide the testing for COVID-19 these past few months,'' said Army Maj. Gen. Daryl Bohac, Nebraska adjutant general. ''I couldn’t be more proud of the team we have had on orders to provide the support and capabilities for such an important mission. It goes without being said we have great soldiers and airmen in the state of Nebraska that are ready to respond at a moment's notice.''

A woman in protective gear stands next to a car.

Throughout the pandemic, the guard has always pushed to ensure the safety of the soldiers and airmen supporting the COVID-19 response missions as well as their fellow citizens.

''I have three directives: [to] preserve the health of the force, protect our families in our communities and stay ready,'' Bohac said. ''If we take care of everyone, we take care of the other two, and that’s the direction we’re following.''

As the mission begins to wind down, the soldiers and airmen know that their hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed, and they are proud of their contributions during this time.

''Our team has enjoyed working with numerous agencies and filling a need for the state during this pandemic,'' Ling said.

(Army Staff Sgt. Heidi Mcclintock is assigned to the Nebraska National Guard.)

WHO urges: not to let COVID-19 eclipse other health issues

Public health systems in Africa are coming under severe strain

Brazzaville:23rd April 2020:: (WHO Media//Seven Seas News)::

Public health systems in Africa are coming under severe strain as the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic persists. But as countries battle to bring the outbreak under control, efforts must also be maintained on other health emergencies and progress made against diseases such as malaria or polio preserved, the World Health Organization (WHO) urged today.

Prior to the arrival of the novel coronavirus in Africa, WHO was stressing the need for countries to ensure the continuity of routine essential health services. An overburdened health system not only undermines the effectiveness of the response to COVID-19 but may also undermine the response to a whole host of preventable threats to human health. Even brief interruptions of vaccination make outbreaks more likely to occur, putting children and other vulnerable groups more at risk of life-threatening diseases. 

“I urge all countries to not lose focus on their gains made in health as they adapt to tackle this new threat,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “We saw with the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in West Africa that we lost more people to malaria, for instance than, we lost to the Ebola outbreak. Let us not repeat that with COVID-19.”

Confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa continue to rise, now exceeding 25 000. WHO is supporting countries in all aspects of the COVID-19 response and has recently published guidelines for ensuring the continuation of critical health services, including immunization and anti-malaria campaigns. The guidelines stress the need for countries to take a dynamic approach that mitigates any unavoidable pause in vaccination campaigns. 

The consequences of disrupting efforts to control malaria in Africa could be particularly grave. Current estimates suggest that sub-Saharan Africa accounted for approximately 93% of all malaria cases and 94% of deaths, mainly among children under five. A new analysis by WHO and partners suggests that in a worst case scenario if malaria prevention and treatment services were severely disrupted as a result of COVID-19, the number of malaria deaths in 2020 in sub-Saharan Africa could rise to double the number in 2018.

“Africa has made significant progress over the past 20 years in stopping malaria from claiming lives. While COVID-19 is a major health threat, it’s critical to maintain malaria prevention and treatment programmes. The new modelling shows deaths could exceed 700 000 this year alone. We haven’t seen mortality levels like that in 20 years. We must not turn back the clock,” said Dr Moeti.

There are countries like Benin, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Chad, Central African Republic, Uganda and Tanzania which are continuing with their insecticide treated bed net campaigns and other important malaria prevention activities. Countries are adapting their malaria strategies to the current complex situation.

Another essential health service is immunization. The response to COVID-19 has already disrupted vaccination efforts on the continent. Despite considerable progress on immunization, one in four African children remain under-immunized. Measles vaccination campaigns in Chad, Ethiopia, Nigeria and South Sudan have already been suspended because of COVID-19, leaving approximately 21 million children who would have otherwise been vaccinated unprotected. In response to the introduction of physical distancing measures, WHO has published guidelines on immunization in the context of COVID-19.

What is World Health Day about?

A day to celebrate the work of nurses and midwives

7 April 2020 is the day to celebrate the work of nurses and midwives and remind world leaders of the critical role they play in keeping the world healthy. Nurses and other health workers are at the forefront of COVID-19 response - providing high quality, respectful treatment and care, leading community dialogue to address fears and questions and, in some instances,  collecting data for clinical studies. Quite simply, without nurses, there would be no response.

In this International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, World Health Day will highlight the current status of nursing and around the world. WHO and its partners will make a series of recommendations to strengthen of the nursing and midwifery workforce.

This will be vital if we are to achieve national and global targets related to universal health coverage, maternal and child health, infectious and non-communicable diseases including mental health, emergency preparedness and response, patient safety and the delivery of integrated, people-centered care, amongst others.

We are calling for your support on World Health Day to ensure that the nursing and midwifery workforces are strong enough to ensure that everyone, everywhere gets the healthcare they need. (Courtesy: WHO)

The tagline for World Health Day is: Support nurses and midwives.

Click of A Tearful Embrace

When A Soldier Welcomed Home with the Tears of Joy

A soldier with the New Jersey National Guard is welcomed home during a ceremony in West-field, N.J., Dec. 12, 2019. The soldiers were returning from Jordan where they supported Operation Spartan Shield.
Photo By: Mark Olsen

NASA, FAA Demonstrate Wireless Communication with Aircraft

May 3, 2016 RELEASE 16-013
The next steps for AeroMACS will include end-to-end testing

For the first time ever, a team of engineers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center conveyed aviation data--including route options and weather information--to an airplane over a wireless communication system for aircraft on the ground.

The demonstration, which was conducted at Glenn’s Communications, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS) test bed in collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration and Hitachi, LTD on Feb. 11, demonstrated two technologies that could change airport operations worldwide.

“This was the first time we provided this type of information to an airplane over a ground wireless network,” said Paul Nelson, Glenn’s project manager for Cyber-Security and Secure Communications, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS).

The team used an Aircraft Access to System Wide Information Management (SWIM), or AAtS, prototype technical solution to convey the aviation information to an FAA Bombardier Global 5000 test aircraft taxiing 60 to 70 miles per hour on the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport runway. They sent the information over a new wireless communication system called Aeronautical Mobile Airport Communications System, or AeroMACS.

The prototype AeroMACS hardware was developed by Hitachi. The system is based on WiMAX wireless communication standards, but uses different frequencies to enable connectivity on the ground. AAtS is an FAA technology demonstration and prototype initiative that enables solutions for connecting aircraft and flight crews to common-sourced aeronautical, weather and flight information. The AeroMACS demonstration enabled connectivity to allow updates to weather, airport status and flight and flow information prior to takeoff.

Until now, pilots have relied on voice communication with air traffic control or their airline operations center for this type of information because traditional wireless technologies don’t support high data throughputs. Together, AAtS and AeroMACS will improve situational awareness and reduce the potential for human error by giving pilots access to the information they need to make decisions. The trials consisted of three test cases designed to evaluate performance of both the AAtS and AeroMACS technologies. The trials demonstrated that AeroMACS can simultaneously transport multiple services seamlessly.
“It performed very well; it passed the test,” said Rafael Apaza, the AeroMACS technical lead. “We were able to send multiple applications to the aircraft at the same time and exchange surveillance and advisory flight information with fixed facilities without losing any data. This wireless communications capability will deliver great benefits to U.S. airport operations.”

In addition to improving safety, Nelson said the new wireless technology could allow airports to grow and change more affordably by replacing old underground systems.

“Airport communication systems use a lot of underground cables, which makes repairs and changes difficult,” he said. “Replacing and eliminating the underground infrastructure with wireless technology will reduce maintenance costs and downtime and allow airports to enhance capabilities more quickly.”

Glenn began investigating wireless communication technology for airports in 2004 and has worked with government and industry partners worldwide to develop AeroMACS and the wireless network standards. 

The next steps for AeroMACS will include end-to-end testing involving multiple airports and evaluation of security measures.

The FAA Bombardier Global 5000 test aircraft used in the wireless communication system demonstration.
Credits: NASA

India is not complete without Kashmiriyat:PM Modi

07-November-2015 14:23 IST

PM announces eighty thousand crore rupee package for J and K

PM addresses public meeting at Srinagar

Srinagar: 7th November 2015: (PIB):

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today announced a development package of eighty thousand crore rupees for the State of Jammu and Kashmir. In his address at the Sher-e-Kashmir stadium in Srinagar, Shri Narendra Modi recalled former Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee's message of Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat, Insaniyat.

"India is not complete without Kashmiriyat," the Prime Minister said, mentioning the Sufi tradition of India. 

He praised the people of the state for reposing their faith in Jamhooriyat (democracy) and said that the progress of Jammu and Kashmir had to be based on Insaniyat. 

The Prime Minister said his Government worked for "Sabka saath, sabka vikas," and therefore, it was essential for development to reach all parts of the country. He said the State of Jammu and Kashmir should return once again to the days when people from all parts of India saved money to visit the State. He said that besides tourism, attention was being given to sectors such as Pashmina, and Saffron. 

The Prime Minister narrated his experience of reconstruction following the Gujarat earthquake of 2001. He said that though the State of Jammu and Kashmir had suffered a lot due to floods last year, he saw the spirit (jazba) among the people, and was convinced that the State would soon overcome the difficulties. He recalled how he had rushed to the State soon after the floods and had spent Diwali last year in the State. He also recalled how his mother had given him Rs. 5000 last year for flood relief in Jammu and Kashmir. 

The Prime Minister said the atmosphere of gloom that pervaded India till recently has lifted over the last 17 months. He said India is now considered the fastest growing major economy in the world. 

The Prime Minister mentioned that the State from where young cricketer Pervez Rasool hails, should witness international cricket matches again. He said top Indian cricketers use bats made in the State. 

The Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Shri Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, Union Minister Shri Nitin Gadkari, and Union MoS Dr. Jitendra Singh were present on the occasion. (PIB)

***

The launch currently is targeted for Thursday, Dec. 3

Sat, Nov 7, 2015 at 12:41 PM

The spacecraft will carry more than 7,000 pounds of cargo

Inside the high bay in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, was used to remove the protective covering from the Orbital ATK Cygnus pressurized module. The spacecraft will carry more than 7,000 pounds of cargo on the next resupply flight to the International Space Station. The launch currently is targeted for Thursday, Dec. 3 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Credits: NASA/Kim Shiflett