Members of 22 Canadian Forces Health Services Centre (22 CFHSC) pose with the flag on February 9th – Supplied Photo
On 6 Feb 23, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) formally recognized Canadian Forces Health Services (CFHS) with the CAF Unit Commendation for outstanding efforts in response to the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic.
This prestigious award came with a certificate, a coin, and a flag. Both the Surgeon General and Commander of CFHS Division have decided units should have the honour of displaying the flag within their own lines.
Acting Commanding Officer at the time this prestigious honour was given Lieutenant-Commander Mecham had this to say about the award:
“All staff members of 22 CFHSC were critical to mission success during Op LASER and Op VECTOR. Some were deployed to long-term care homes or remote communities with test positivity rates in excess of 80% in the era before vaccines were available, accepting significant personal risk to support and care for their fellow Canadians. Others, including our outstanding civilian staff members, provided critical medical support to CAF members during a period of significant staffing shortages and uncertainty, ensuring success in our crucial mission to provide high-quality care to CAF members during an extremely challenging time.”
The honour of displaying the flag commenced with 33 Field Ambulance in Halifax, NS on 9 Feb 23.