After six weeks of helping CRMC through some of its most difficult staffing challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, a 20-person Department of Defense military support team from Travis Air Force base is almost done with its mission.

A number of Community Regional Medical Center staff members were infected with COVID-19 or were self-quarantined over the past six weeks. At one point, more than 200 CRMC personnel weren’t able to work while the hospital deals with a surge in coronavirus patients.

The hospital celebrated the military team on Thursday with applause and a first responders’ drive-by parade to thank them for their service.

“Some would refer to healthcare providers as heroes and they’ve been recognized for that nationwide,” said CRMC Chief Quality and Medical Officer Jeffrey Thomas.

“I think everybody needs to understand that even heroes need support here and there. For this reason, we refer to our Department of Defense strike team as superheroes because not only did they provide care to the patients, they also provided the necessary support to sustain our workforce and give them a break and a little bit of time to catch a breath of air.”

The team is officially done after Friday and will head back to Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield.