Fort Campbell MEDAC Receives U.S. Army Superior Unit Award

Story by Russell Tafuri

Blanchfield Army Community Hospital

FORT CAMPBELL, Kentucky (Nov. 7, 2024) –U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Campbell, more commonly known as Blanchfield Army Community Hospital, received the Army Superior Unit Award for its outstanding meritorious service in support of COVID-19 response from March 1, 2020 to February 28, 2021.

Given by the order of The Secretary of the Army, the citation recognized the BACH staff for outstanding meritorious service while it provided Coronavirus Disease response efforts, testing capabilities, and vaccination support to its beneficiaries and the community. The staff performed in an exemplary manner and exceeded expectations through the execution of multiple urgent healthcare requirements and humanitarian assistance to mitigate human suffering and loss of life.

The Army Superior Unit Award is given to Army units that display meritorious performance of a difficult and challenging mission carried out under extraordinary circumstances. The BACH team, as an important member of the U.S. Army Medical Readiness Command, East, enabled commanders to successfully complete operations in a variety of theaters and contingency operations as it ensured Soldiers received proper medical prevention and care to maintain those operations.

In July 2020, the Regional Health Command-Atlantic command team visited BACH and met with leaders from the hospital, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and Fort Campbell. Brig. Gen. Paula Lodi, former U.S. Army Regional Health Command – Atlantic Commander, and former RHC-A Senior Enlisted Advisor Command Sgt. Maj. Rebecca Booker received a first-hand look at BACH’s COVID-19 operations, and observed the COVID-19 Clinic, call-center, drive-thru testing site, lab and support services.

The command team reviewed the hospital’s progress to resume local healthcare services that paused nationwide at the onset of the pandemic; and gained understanding of the hospital’s role in continued medical readiness for the 101st and Fort Campbell units.

According to Col. Patrick T. Birchfield, former BACH commander, the BACH staff went from zero testing capabilities to the successful completion and certification of an entire brigade combat team for deployment in just four months. Birchfield said this was a testament to the adaptability of the BACH team.

In August 2020, Blanchfield Army Community Hospital healthcare workers safely and accurately screened and swabbed 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) Soldiers prior to rotation to the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana. This new capability in response to the pandemic allowed leaders to identify and isolate asymptomatic COVID-positive Soldiers within a battalion-size unit prior to deployment which protected the health of the force and allowed command to successfully complete mission requirements.

In 2020, Lodi said she was proud of how the healthcare teams in the region adapted and repurposed themselves to take on the new challenge of the pandemic. She added that the region created pooled testing to relieve pressure on the installation hospitals and clinics, which allowed providers to focus on the diagnostic tests of beneficiaries and the readiness aspects of to get the Army back into large-scale training exercises and deployments.

According to BACH Commander Col. Sam Preston, “Blanchfield Army Community Hospital has a proud history of outstanding service to our Fort Campbell community. The Superior Unit Award for BACH’s performance during COVID recognizes the Hospital System’s efforts during the height of the COVID mission. It is an honor to serve with this amazing team of professionals who are ready to support our communities whenever we are called.”

The units who received the award are: are U.S. Army Readiness Command, East; U.S. Army Public Health Command, East; Walter Reed National Military Medical Center; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Redstone Arsenal; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Eustis; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Moore; Womack Army Medical Center; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Campbell; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Gregg-Adams; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Jackson; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Novosel; U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Stewart; Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center; U.S. Army Dental Health Command, Atlantic; U.S. Army Element, Fort Belvoir Community Hospital; and U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort George G. Meade.