Navy medicine personnel embark 7th Fleet ships to test for COVID-19 at sea
Diana Stancy Correll
The Navy has deployed several medical teams and is now conducting laboratory batch testing for COVID-19 aboard three 7th Fleet ships: aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, amphibious assault ship America, and the 7th Fleet’s flagship, amphibious command ship Blue Ridge.
The medical teams, members of the Navy Forward-Deployed Preventive Medicine Units and Naval Medical Research Center, embarked the ships on March 14 to test groups of sailors exhibiting symptoms of influenza. This is designed to detect any presence of COVID-19 aboard the vessels and eliminate the need to send samples to shore, the Navy said.
“This is the most advanced laboratory capability that Navy Medicine has placed forward deployed,†Lt. Cmdr. Danett Bishop, leader and microbiologist for the preventative medicine team aboard America, said in a Navy news release Sunday. “We can make force health decisions in real time, enhancing the health of the crew while minimizing any potential outbreak of COVID-19.â€
https://www.navytimes.com/news/coronavirus/2020/03/23/navy-medicine-personnel-embark-7th-fleet-ships-to-test-for-covid-19-at-sea/
