Idaho National Guard Troops Train to Support COVID-19 Testing at Saint Alphonsus

Idaho National Guard Troops Train to Support COVID-19 Testing at Saint Alphonsus

Idaho National Guard personnel are training to assist in COVID-19 testing clinics at Saint Alphonsus’ Meridian Health Plaza and 12^th Ave. in Nampa. Idaho Governor Brad Little announced last week the activation of 100 Guardsmen to assist healthcare providers in the state.

The Governor’s order enables Air and Army National Guard soldiers to be deployed for 30 days. Saint Alphonsus is utilizing the troops to help address staffing shortages caused by the growing number of COVID-19 cases in the community.

“Due to the increased incidence of COVID-19 and community need for testing and evaluation, we have prioritized our clinical staffing at our Saint Alphonsus COVID testing sites, resulting in temporary suspension of services at other urgent care clinics,” said Dr. Mark Nassir, President of the Saint Alphonsus Medical Group. “The assistance provided by the Idaho National Guard medical personnel brings incredible lift to our mission. We express gratitude and thanks on behalf of the hard-working, dedicated healthcare professionals serving on the front lines of this pandemic battle, as they care for all patients across our Idaho communities.”

The Guard personnel will assist with both clinical and non-clinical tasks, including traffic control, patient registration and collecting samples for analysis by the on-site lab.

“The Idaho National Guard is proud to support our front-line healthcare workers and greatly appreciate the warm welcome our Airmen and Soldiers have received from the professional staff at Saint Alphonsus,” said Brig. Gen. Russ Johnson. “The training our Service Members are receiving today is essential to enable us to contribute to this extraordinary capability of our healthcare networks.”

Guard officials stress that the personnel assigned to assist are not themselves working in front-line medical civilian jobs, so their deployment to assist Saint Alphonsus and other healthcare providers in the state does not jeopardize medical care at other facilities.

Idaho National Guard Spc. Dawit Berger hurries a COVID-19 test kit to be

administered to a patient at Saint Alphonsus’ Meridian Health Plaza

Saint Alphonsus Medical Assistant Wendy Jetsel (left) consults with

Idaho Army National Guard Spc. Catherine Miller at Meridian Health Plaza.