I am an incredibly proud and grateful Primary Care Provider team member of our Women's Health Primary Care Patient Aligned Care Team at the American Lake Women's Clinic. Nurses Leslie and Val demonstrate I CARE values every single day in their delivery of high-quality, patient-centered care. I consistently receive feedback from the Veterans on our panel that they TRUST Leslie and Val because they always follow through on promises and go out of their way to ensure Veterans get the care they need.

Examples of this include several Women Veterans who have continued to engage in treatments for substance use disorder within Primary Care because Leslie and Val have taken the time to ensure they are trained on providing this care (demonstrating excellence) and that the Veterans are set up for success with logistics and care coordination. Nurse Val is herself an Army Veteran, and Nurse Leslie is a military spouse. Both show tremendous cultural competency and cultural humility regarding military and Veteran culture. They are able to connect with Veterans deeply, show respect, and demonstrate commitment to their care.

Nurse Val's advocacy around provision of Trauma-Informed Care within our clinic is a shining reflection of I CARE values. Nurse Val noted that not all providers and nursing staff were adhering to the trauma-informed protocol of talking to Veterans with their clothes on before pelvic or other sensitive exams. She brought this to our Shared Governance Council and helped change practice within our clinic to ensure Veterans have a clothed meeting with the provider prior to disrobing for sensitive exams. She has also been a champion of teaching fellow nursing and care associate staff how to monitor for signs of distress in Veterans and alerting the provider to adjust the exam to meet the needs of the Veterans.

Nurse Leslie has worked diligently to build trust with the Veterans on our panel, many of whom had past traumatic experiences accessing VA care. Her caring, nursing excellence, and advocacy have helped our Veterans rebuild trust in the VA. I am grateful to work alongside these exceptional PACT team members, and our Veterans are fortunate for their nursing excellence.