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 Woodrow W. Hoofard, 102 year old U.S. Navy and World War II Veteran (1944-1945), receiving his COVID vaccination at the Redding Outpatient Clinic, VA Northern California Health Care System
*Note: many links in this newsletter will be internal and accessible by VA staff only.
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Due to the pandemic, there continues to be a worldwide shortage of medical grade gloves and nitrile leaving manufacturers struggling to meet demand. Although VA has plenty today, VHA senior leadership is raising awareness so frontline clinical providers may contribute to conserving this critical resource. For example, dietary staff may use a food service glove, or others may be able to use handwashing if sufficient for the task. Please take a moment to listen to Dr. Beth Taylor , Assistant Under Secretary for Health and Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer, providing information on this important topic. Be sure to bookmark the National Center for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention COVID-19 Resources SharePoint (COVID-19 Resources) for the most current updates for Internal Staff, communications and external authoritative sources. From this site, you can easily navigate to the COVID-19 Vaccine SharePoint site in addition to the ONS COVID-19 Resources intranet site. Also bookmark the national COVID (Vaccine) Surveillance Dashboard where you can review the latest vaccination-related data, by VISN, facility and a number of other data measures supporting vaccination operations across VA: COVID Vaccine Surveillance Dashboard.
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As March 2021 is Brain Injury Awareness Month, it is important to recognize the important role of the ONS-based Polytrauma, Spinal Cord Injury/Disorder and Rehabilitation Field Advisory Committee (FAC). This group is comprised of nursing experts, representing multiple roles, who lead the advancement of nursing practice in support of this unique mission. One area of focus includes the evaluation and treatment of Veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) by leveraging nursing and interdisciplinary team partnerships within and external to VA. At present, there are multiple TBI-based efforts underway designed to enable and advance clinical practice and include:
- Revision of VA/Department of Defense Clinical Practice Guidelines supporting mild TBI
- Comparative research strategies supporting TBI recovery post in-patient stays
- Participation in the Brain injury Rehabilitation Improving the Transition Experience (BRITE) study
- Development of a VA Talent Management System (TMS) course on management of TBI and co-occurring disorders
- Development of a Rehabilitation Case Management Telehealth Competency Assessment
Resources supporting these professionals can be found at Clinical Practice Program (click on View Products) with training resources found at Field Resources – Training.
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As an employee of the U.S. Patent Office at the outset of the American Civil War, Clara Barton found herself drawn to nursing and caring for wounded troops serving at the front lines, eventually earning the nickname, “Angel of the Battlefield.” Following the war, she learned of the Geneva, Switzerland-based Red Cross organization established to support agreements designed to protect the sick and wounded, ensuring neutrality for those groups involved in providing care. Barton, along with noted influencers of the time such as Fredrick Douglas, worked diligently to establish a similar organization in the U.S., resulting in the creation of the American Red Cross in 1881. Barton served as the first American Red Cross president from its inception until her resignation in 1904, at the age of 83. Barton’s legacy, based in nursing leadership, lives on today by the actions of the countless employees and volunteers of the American Red Cross. For more information, please visit: About Clara Barton | Red Cross Founder | American Red Cross.
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Congratulations to Donia Till, MSN, RN, CGRN, CNL who has been selected as the Direct Care Nurse winner of the 2020 Pathway Nurse of the Year Award by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. Donia is being recognized for her exemplary contributions and commitment to shared decision-making and the organization's shared governance structure, leadership, and professional development. Donia was nominated for being the driving force behind her organization's pursuit of Pathway designation as she lives the Pathway Standards every day. Donia was instrumental in the organization's “Let's Get Certified” campaign by providing education and leading the shared governance education team and steering committee as co-chair. With her pursuit of advanced education, Donia fosters the foundation of leadership and provides safe and effective patient outcomes. These types of nurse-led efforts are critical in the success of an organization's designation because they allow nursing staff to be engaged with the Pathway to Excellence® journey and the benefits that come with it.
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The Care Coordination and Integrated Case Management (CC&ICM) Initiative is gaining momentum enterprise wide, and ONS would like to share a case study highlighting how CC&ICM can both reduce healthcare costs and improve the overall well-being of an individual Veteran. This case study is just one example of the RACETIME model which stands for Risk stratification, Assessment for the level of stratification, Coordinator lead, Evaluate whole health, Trusting partnership, Integrate care, Monitor progress, Experience of veteran and employee. See how this Veteran was impacted by the CC&ICM initiative and how integrating care coordination through the VHA Healthcare System and Community Care can have a significant impact. To review the case study please visit: Share Point Portal.
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The High-Reliability Organization (HRO) steering committee has selected two individuals and two teams from across the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) for the 2020 Q4 HeRO Award recipients. Dani “DJ” Roberts, RN, Montana Healthcare System (pictured) and the Office of Nursing Services (ONS) – Office of Nursing Informatics (ONI) team. The awardees were selected from over 50 nominations for this honor.
The National HeRO Award is the highest level of HRO recognition within VHA and is awarded quarterly to honor employees who advance VHA’s Journey to High Reliability through demonstrations of VHA’s HRO Principles in action. Demonstrations may include going above and beyond with patient care or workplace safety, leveraging safety practices to perform well in a crisis, or serving as a role model or peer champion of HRO. The actions taken by these individuals and teams represent the essence of VHA’s Journey to High Reliability and demonstrate our commitment to affirming the trust of Veterans and their families through the achievement of Zero Harm. For additional information on HRO and how to submit nominations for upcoming HeRO awards, please visit: Home - HeRO-Award (sharepoint.com) (see Quick Links for nomination form).
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The Office of Nursing Services encourages recognition of Nursing Excellence through the American Nurses’ Credentialing Centers (ANCC) Magnet and Pathways to Excellence (PTE) programs. At this writing, there are seven VHA facilities with PTE designation, designed to celebrate creation of positive practice environments with engaged staff and high job satisfaction. These characteristics promote recruitment and retention of top tier employees. Magnet designation reflects incorporation of all PTE elements plus aligning strategic priorities to improve patient outcomes. Magnet recognizes staff development along the career trajectory, designed to maximize nursing skills and autonomy creating optimal patient outcomes sustained over time. VHA boasts three Magnet designated facilities. All designations are an exciting accomplishment that energizes staff and maximizes caring for the Veteran population. If you are interested in more information on the Nursing Excellence Collaborative, please find our website here: https://vaww.va.gov/nursing/magnet.asp . We meet monthly on the first Thursday from 2 – 3 pm EST. More information on Magnet and PTE can be found on the ANCC website at (Magnet) https://www.nursingworld.org/organizational-programs/magnet/ and (PTE) (https://www.nursingworld.org/organizational-programs/pathway/ ).
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The Office of Nursing Informatics (ONI) has facilitated an Affiliation Agreement between Rutgers University, School of Nursing and the VHA - Office of Academic Affairs. With this affiliation, Informatics graduate students are now able to complete virtual clinical rotations within the ONI. Rutgers University has expressed great enthusiasm with this new relationship with VA, given the COVID19 pandemic, with a student scheduled to complete a virtual clinical rotation focused on the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) during the spring 2021 semester. The clinical rotation and overall student experience are based on a crosswalk between the course syllabus and learning objectives with the daily activities of a nurse informatics specialist. This is to ensure that the student can apply learning in a real-life environment, in real-time, to better understand the nurse informatics specialist’s role during the SDLC for health information technology (HIT) and innovation. For more information contact Dr. Avey Davis, VHA Deputy Chief Nurse Informatics Officer at: avaretta.davis@va.gov.
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The Employee Incentive Scholarship Program (EISP) authorizes the VA to award scholarships to employees pursuing degrees or training in health care disciplines for which recruitment and retention is difficult. The National Nursing Education Initiative (NNEI) is an initiative within EISP available to permanent full- and part-time VA Registered Nurses (RN) in the 0610 occupational series. NNEI scholarships support RNs seeking baccalaureate and advanced nursing degrees from academic programs which meet VA Qualification Standards. Scholarships cover tuition and related expenses such as registration, fees, and books up to a maximum of $41,572, in return for a one to three-year service obligation upon completion of education. Scholarships may cover up to 90 undergraduate or 54 graduate credit hours. VHA facilities may recommend employees for participation based local Workforce Succession Plans with applications submitted through the local VHA facility. During FY20, 940 RNs received new NNEI scholarships, 194 completed Baccalaureate degrees, 303 completed Master’s, and 37 completed Doctorates.
Additional NNEI information is available on National Nursing Education Initiative (NNEI), WMC HR HUB, and VA Careers Education Support.
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The Home-based Cardiac Rehabilitation Program (HBCR), developed and managed by the VA Office of Rural Health, provides a 12-week ‘at home’ alternative to traditional in person cardiac rehabilitation. At the Durham VA Healthcare System, the Program Nurse Director reviews referrals for appropriateness to participate then contacts the Veteran to describe the program and to assess interest. If interested, the Veteran is scheduled for the Enrollment visit during which the RN coach assesses the participant’s current functional status followed by the development of an exercise prescription. The RN coach then contacts the Veteran weekly by telephone or video to home. During these contacts, the RN coach gathers information from the Veteran from their daily record keeping, adjusts the exercises, and provides teaching about Heart Disease, Exercise, Stress Management, Nutrition, Tobacco Cessation, and Medication Adherence. Veterans who have completed the program have shown improvement in function, confidence, depression, and have been highly satisfied. For further information, please contact Kariann Drwal, National Director of Home-Based Rehab Programs (Kariann.drwal@va.gov) or access any of the following links:
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