ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — Jim Miller is a dad. He’s a husband. He’s a nurse practitioner.
But, when the novel coronavirus hit, his duties changed. He became Lt. Colonel Jim Miller for the indefinite future.
Miller's been part of the Missouri Air National Guard 131st medical group.
He was ordered to be the commanding officer of a Florissant hotel turned alternative care site for patients fighting COVID-19. The patients aren’t sick enough to be in the hospital, but they are too sick to go home.
The facility can hold up to 119 patients. Miller's unit is made up of medical personnel.
“We come in at 7 in the morning and leave at 7 at night. We’re just kind of staffing it similar to a hospital or nursing facility,” he said.
When asked about why dual careers in nursing and the military appealed to him, he said his desire to help others was instilled at an early age.
“My mother, growing up, took care of special needs foster children," he said. "She was a nurse. My grandmother on her side was a nurse, some of the kids we took care of were quadriplegic or had other disabilities. I felt like that’s what I want to do, is take care of people.”
A native St. Louisan, Miller's family is only a 40-minute drive away, but he can’t see them. The unit is living in a nearby hotel to keep their loved ones safe.
“It’s kind of more difficult because I’m not overseas. I know they are right down the road,” he said.
There is no timeline on how long Miller will command the unit operating the alternate care site.
When his duties are complete, he'll go back to his normal day job as a nurse practitioner at a private family medicine practice at Christian Hospital.
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