“I have worked with Dana Asmondy since August 2023 in the PC-NP residency. Not only is she one of the most caring and compassionate Nurses that I have ever met, but she also knows everyone and will stop in the hallway to say hi and check on other staff members. I am new to the VA, and I don’t really know anybody. When I walk in the hallways with Dana, she is constantly stopping and saying hi to other staff, Veterans and Vet families that she has taken care of when she was an RN on the units. She hugs people, asks them how they are doing, and displays true empathy for others. She is truly the representation of what the VA strives for when we talk about Veteran centered care at a high reliability organization. I have never met someone as compassionate and passionate as Dana is.

Dana had a Veteran who was having a metal health emergency and really needed Dana’s help. It was her first time experiencing a Vet with such a high acuity level of depression and need for urgent assistance. Not only did Dana sit in the exam room with this Veteran for over the allotted appointment time, but she listened to him. This Vet truly needed some human interaction, and Dana was able to provide that for him. After hearing the story of how Dana felt and debriefing with her about the situation, I realized that she helped this Veteran remain dignified.

During the visit, she collaborated with our LPN’s to have this Veteran’s labs drawn and walked with him to the IMAC to ensure that this Veteran received the highest level of care that would be most appropriated for his urgent mental health condition. She displayed true integrity by establishing and maintaining trust with this Vet because it was her first visit with him and ensuring that he would get to the right place. This is huge for our Veterans, as they typically don’t have an easy time opening up or creating a trusting relationship with providers during the first visit. Dana advocated for him and collaborated with the rest of the care team. She stayed over an hour late that day to make sure that all loose ends were tied up with documentation; discussed the plan with the mental health integration team before transferring him to the IMAC; and discussed with the primary care provider and the LPN all to ensure that the plan of care was in place and ensuring the Vet that he would be safe. During our debrief, she displayed immense kindness. She proves that we are all human beings and that even as a provider, we should still have emotion. If you let go of your emotions, then you are forgetting how it feels to be a patient and how it feels to be in their shoes. Dana never forgets her patients. When you forget how to display your own emotions, then you can no longer have empathy toward patents. After seeing how affected Dana was by this Vet and his story, I knew she needed to be recognized. She is an incredible Nurse and provider. I am honored to call her my colleague and friend.”