Four Milwaukee VA nurses earn excellence awards
Four Milwaukee VA Medical Center nurses were honored with VA Secretary’s Awards for Nursing Excellence this week for their extraordinary work, with two of the nurses advancing for consideration for national accolades.
Ami Koroma, Santos Olmo, C. Yvette Taylor and Michelle Matheny received the awards during a ceremony Monday that kicked off the annual Nurses Week celebration at the medical center.
Koroma, who works on 7C, received the award for nursing assistants, health tech and medical instrument techs. Olmo, who works in the Women’s Health Clinic, was the licensed practical nurse honoree.
Taylor, who works in the Domiciliary, was the registered nurse honoree, while Matheny, the nurse residency program manager, was honored in the category of Registered Nurse in Expanded Role.
Koroma and Olmo were named finalists for the regional VISN 12 honors in their respective categories, meaning they will be in the running for the national awards in their respective categories.
'Ensures excellent care'
Koroma was lauded for continually going out of her way to help Veterans as well as her fellow nurses.
“Ami always considers what is best for the Veterans and advocates their needs to the nurses,” her nomination states. “Ami provides the Veterans the highest degree of dignity.”
Often working with incapacitated patients, Koroma is noted for her care and compassion when it comes to feeding and bathing the Veterans. “It gives her joy when she knows a patient has been cleaned and washed up. Not everybody can give a bed bath or shower … and Ami does those tasks very well.
“Ami is hard-working and ensures the Veteran receives excellent care. She exemplifies the VA core values of integrity, commitment, advocacy, respect and excellence wherever she goes.”
'Personal commitment'
Olmo, maternity care coordinator for Women’s Health, was singled out for stepping into his new role in 2022 and doing all he could to learn every aspect of caring for expectant Veterans — including taking lactation classes.
“Santos … worked tirelessly to interact with every pregnant Vet and took the proper amount of time to ensure that they understood their maternity benefits and that all of their questions were answered,” according to his nomination.”
This led to Olmo revamping the maternity care packet and personalizing each one. He also developed a maternity care call schedule, which helps patients track the pregnancy and correlate that with their appointments.
He was complimented for his “personal commitment to improve Veteran care … and consistently seeking out knowledge. With Santos’ participation, all Milwaukee VA Women’s Health Program metrics have increased.”
'Compassion and respect'
Taylor was cited for being “passionate about nursing excellence and serving as a role model for her peers in championing the nursing profession and working to the top of her license to serve all Veterans,” her nomination read.
Her work with Veterans transitioning out of the Domiciliary has been invaluable. “She has developed a rapport with the Veterans and empowered them to take ownership of their health care.”
In addition to her work, she volunteers with the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses, writing and reviewing curriculum and developing policies and practices to improve the use of physical restraints for patients exhibiting violent behavior.
“Her daily work demonstrates compassion and respect for the essential dignity and value of everyone she comes across. She fosters meaningful connection and relationship with Veterans and colleagues and supports their health and well-being,” the nomination states.
'Strong leadership'
Matheny was recognized for elevating the nurse residency program, developing resources for residents and partnering with other stakeholders.
“Part of her role is educating and mentoring new graduate nurses across the organization. She partners with subject matter experts from various areas to deliver curriculum that embodies the importance of delivering quality nursing practice in a positive manner related to nurse-sensitive indicators,” according to her nomination.
Matheny collaborates with unit managers, nurse scientists and many others across the organization. She also visits schools and conferences to promote nursing and the Milwaukee VA while partnering with past nurse residents to promote Milwaukee VA programs to incoming students.
“Her strong leadership of our programs has been key to our recruitment and retention of this next generation of high-performing novice nurses who will ensure quality care for Veterans in the decades to come.”
DAISY Awards
Also recognized were the Milwaukee VA Medical Center’s DAISY Award honorees from the past year:
- Sylvia Ortega, Primary Care.
- Elizabeth Ramsey, Primary Care, Green Bay
- Amanda Las, Home-Based Primary Care
- Mikayla Landowski, 3C
- Matthew Burkart, Anesthesia
- Kelly Ragen-Pease, 3C,
- Mary Solorzano, ICU
- Maia Thelen, 6Cs/PCU
- Joe Dierbeck, 7C
- Erika Hernandez, Surgical Clinics
- ICU, Heroes’ Corner and Interprofessional Partners.
Presented nationally by the DAISY Foundation, DAISY Awards recognize extraordinary nurses for going above and beyond to make a difference in the lives of those they serve.
In addition, Meghan Lorbiecki was recognized for earning the national DAISY Nurse Leader Award for Policy for her work to revise clinical practice guidelines for management of substance use disorders.
She will be recognized at the American Organization for Nursing Leadership National Advocacy Day conference in Washington, D.C., June 4.