Ms. Kimberly Oakman has demonstrated the expert skills and understanding of patient care in the Home and Community Based Care (H&CBC) Programs. During Fiscal Year (FY) 18, she implemented referrals for new intravenous infusions. Eight veterans from the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Clinic were started on a new Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis medication called Radicava and two Veterans received Milrinone and Gammagard, all of this a new initiative for our VA medical center. Community Nursing Home Care consults from all programs are currently estimated to be more than 3000 Veterans per year, an exponential increase since last fiscal year.
Ms. Oakman served as a member of Life-Sustaining Treatment/Decision Interventions initiative. A national quality improvement initiative to promote personalized, proactive, patient-driven care for Veterans with serious illness. Ms. Oakman was instrumental in policy development, template and assisted with training for nursing staff. These efforts resulted in 578 Life-Sustaining Treatment (LST) notes since April 2018 and the attainment of the national goal of training 80% of the STVHCS staff. The LST training team delivered nearly 150 sessions from 10/27/2017 - 05/17/2018 to 1248 to Physicians, Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, Registered Nurses (RNs), Social Workers and Chaplains.
Ms. Oakman is credited for the growth and success of our newest programs, Hospital in Home (HIH) and Home Oxygen. HIH delivers acute care in the Veteran's home instead of a hospital and allows for early discharge of stabilized Veterans. Benefits of HIH are a reduction in readmission rates, reduction in cost due to hospital stays, reduced length of stay, readmissions, and higher caregiver satisfaction and lower stress. The program continues to grow in census and staff. Ms. Oakman is sought as a subject matter expert locally, within and outside the VISN for her expertise and serves as a mentor for the success of her programs. Another new program is the Home oxygen program, which Ms. Oakman developed as a result of Joint Commission recommendations. The program has been established as one of the first in the country, currently with a census of over 1,000 patients.
A leader with a strategic perspective, Ms. Oakman has also earned a national reputation as an expert in home care program. Moonshot was set up to increase community partnership, increase awareness about services offered by the VA, and learn how the H&CBC programs work at the VA so this can be shared with other VA facilities. Ms. Oakman's strong community partnerships, robust community programs, and leadership were pivotal in STVHCS selection as one of 5 in the nation to participate in the Choose Home Moonshot Initiative.
But the main reason why Ms. Oakman is a DAISY Nurse Leader is her servant heart and her passion to help our Veterans. Ms. Oakman receives calls from frantic caregivers on a regular basis from Veterans' caregivers in desperate need of practical assistance, medications for their loved ones and other referrals. For example, one Veteran emailed his sincere appreciation for the assistance and that Kim provided. He stated that Ms. Oakman did a great job listening to his issues and he was satisfied with the service she provided him. The Military and Veterans Affairs Liaison also echoed the Veteran's sentiment, "Thank you for all the great work you provide our constituents. I know you always get unhappy Veteran Congressional Inquiries and thought it was imperative to send a positive one. Again, thank you."
Despite all the demands placed on Ms. Oakman, her unwavering commitment is evident as she never hesitates to do what is right and all that is necessary to help a Veteran in need.