TVHS earns national recognition for virtual patient monitoring program
By Hannah McDuffie, Public Affairs Officer
VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (TVHS) received the 2025 AvaPrize VA Excellence Award from AvaSure for its innovative use of virtual patient monitoring to improve patient safety and quality of care.
The award honors VA sites that demonstrate exceptional outcomes and leadership in virtual care through the AvaSure TeleSitter program. In just eight months of its implementation at TVHS, the virtual care program led to measurable improvements, including a 32% decrease in patient falls from November 2024 through July 2025.
“Our outcomes have been so significant as far as our decrease in falls and communication with patients” said Bridget Mona, assistant nurse manager for virtual nursing care.
The telesitter program allows specially trained staff to remotely monitor patients who may be at higher risk for falls, elopement, and other adverse events that can cause patient harm. Nursing teams can request remote monitoring for admitted hospital patients when they believe an extra layer of observation will improve the Veteran’s safety.
The program has also helped reduce the need for in-room sitters and allows for support staff, such as health technicians and nursing assistants, to return to direct patient care.
“Having virtual sitters monitor the patients 24/7 allows for more staffing on the units. Our teams assist with monitoring so nursing staff can be available for more critical needs at the bedside.” Mona said.
Primarily located at the Alvin C. York VA Medical Center, the telesitter team consists of five nursing staff who carefully observe up to 24 patients simultaneously around the clock at the Alvin C. York VA Medical Center and Nashville VA Medical Center.
Teamwork and leadership have been central to the program’s success, according to Mona. Her colleague Nobuhle “No” Moyo, a nursing assistant on the telesitter team, also agreed and emphasized the importance of collaboration.
“We have a good team. Everybody plays a role,” Moyo said. “I would also like to thank everybody else for making it happen. We wouldn’t be where we are today without nursing leadership wanting us to work harder so that we can make this place a better place.”
To celebrate the national recognition, TVHS executive leadership surprised the team with an early morning breakfast and award ceremony. TVHS Executive Director Daniel Dücker, Acting Associate Director for Patient Care Services Dr. La-Kenya Rushing, and Chief Nurse for Business Operations Emma Phillips were in attendance to celebrate the group.
“We are so proud of you all,” Phillips said, who oversees the virtual nursing program. “The work you are doing makes a profound difference every day—not only with our Veterans, but their families as well.”
The AvaPrize VA Excellence Award highlights TVHS’s growing role as a leader in virtual care and reinforces its commitment to innovative, Veteran-centered care.