FARMINGTON – Two members of the Maine National Guard arrived at Franklin Memorial Hospital (FMH) last Thursday and Friday, Dec. 16 and 17, to assist FMH care team members in nonclinical roles under a deployment order from Gov. Janet Mills.

Upon their arrival guard members were given a tour of the facility, were fitted for N95 masks, and taught how to properly use personal protective equipment (PPE).

The guard members are escorting patients, who have tested positive and are at risk for serious COVID-19 illness, to and from the facility’s monoclonal antibody clinic located in the ICU.

On Monday, Wilton native Isaac Cardona, SrA, a senior airman who enlisted with the US Air Force shortly after his 2019 graduation from Mt. Blue High School, was meeting referred patients outside the hospital to provide them with the necessary PPE before taking them to the clinic area to receive their 30-minute infusion.

“Monoclonal antibody therapies have been shown to greatly reduce the chance of hospitalization for those at risk of severe COVID,” said Dr. Ross Isacke, FMH chief medical officer. “This therapy can be extremely effective, but it’s not a replacement for vaccination. The community still needs to get vaccinated and boosted to break the virus’ chain of transmission.”

“We are so grateful for (the Guard’s)  help,” Dr. Isacke added. “Having just one additional person means we can treat more patients each day.”

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