Nurse Residency Program Profile – Shyanne Dela Vega

Staff in all areas of health care train at VA locations across the country, and VAPIHCS has training programs for many different medical specialties. The newest is the Nurse Practitioner Residency, with the first cohort going through their training now. One resident in the program -Shyanne Dela Vega- shared her story. 

“I actually started in the VA as a certified nursing assistant at the Community Living Center (CLC) five years ago during Covid,” Dela Vega said. After she passed the board exam, she worked at the CLC as a registered nurse for two years. “I also worked as a float nurse at the Spark M. Matsunaga Ambulatory Care Center for two years.” 

As a float nurse, she worked in multiple departments, such as primary care, employee health, the vaccine clinic, the pain clinic, and the rapid access clinic. She worked while going to school to become a nurse practitioner. Dela Vega graduated as the first cohort of Hawaii Pacific University’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing to Doctor of Nursing Practice in Family Nurse Practitioner Program in 2024. Shortly after passing her board exam, doing the interview, and meeting the requirements, she was accepted into the first cohort of the VAPIHCS Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Residency Program. She says it was perfect timing.

Dela Vega is an Oahu local who attended Moanalua High School. The residency program she is part of allows her the opportunity to learn from nurse practitioners and physicians in all different parts of VAPIHCS. She has had the opportunity to see how a Nurse Practitioner functions in departments like radiology, pain management, endocrinology, women’s health, and home-based primary care. Offering trainees the chance to try out different areas helps them become more well-rounded, in addition to helping them decide where they may want to work after their residency. 

“You get to learn what you like because of the rotations model,” Dela Vega said. “I just returned from Hilo where I worked with the home-based primary care team. It was interesting because the Veterans show you their home, or show off plants in their garden, and so you feel like you get to know them and understand what matters most to them.” 

Part of the residency is the requirement that each resident do an Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) project. This type of research is not as involved as a study, but it seeks to collect evidence on a variety of topics that will help ensure that VA is using the best practices in all areas of care. The purpose of Dela Vega’s project was to promote the use of patient after-visit summaries by providing a guide and education on its value to increase providers’ knowledge, confidence, and use in specialty care. Currently, the after-visit summary is not a required standard of clinical practice within specialty care at VA clinics in Oahu, Hawaii. However, it recently became a requirement within primary care. 

“It is such an important step because it gives the Veterans a summary of their lab work, imaging, medications, referrals, upcoming appointments, and much more,” Dela Vega said. “By going over this summary and giving it to the Veteran, we are helping them take better charge of their care and making things easier for them.” 

Dela Vega said that getting her training through VAPIHCS has been invaluable because the preceptors are positive, helpful, and invested in her success. She also enjoys working with Veterans. At the age of 100 years old, her great-grandfather, Private First Class Francisco P. Benigno Sr., was presented with a Congressional Gold Medal, the nation’s highest civilian award, for his service during WWII and for surviving the Bataan Death March as a prisoner of war. She feels inspired by him and is grateful for his presence in her life. Many of her family members served in the military. Dela Vega wanted to work with Veterans because she aspired to care for those who sacrificed their lives to serve our country. 

“Veterans have the best stories,” Dela Vega said. “You get to be there for them through the good times and the bad times.”