On numerous occasions, Melissa has averted disasters by being alert and caring when she is contacting our patients that they may need acute medical attention, psychiatric attention, or other referrals. She has been on-site and on-call for our service throughout the COVID pandemic, fielding many daily requests for information, help, and so forth, always with a willing heart and a smile.
Additionally, she has run errands for my program (the NP MH Residency) on her own time to help me due to my current location which is remote. Without Melissa, we would not have been able to pull off our NP Residency virtual graduation ceremony which was enjoyed by our residents and their families. She always is "on it" whenever something is happening and shows caring and respect for every staff and veteran. I am personally aware of her assisting in several emergency medical situations as well as psychiatric ones over the past few months.
Due to her collaborative nature with our PCMHI team under impromptu questioning during our last JCAHO visit, she was named by the JCAHO reviewer as a "fireball". Additionally, Melissa is quite the technology wiz and has helped to train other nurses and LIPs on our service in BHL and case management. Melissa deserves the kudos that come with her steadfast service to Veterans. She is our PCMHI NorCal trainer and as such welcomes all new staff to training and is an invaluable member of our team.