Kathleen R Parker
May 2025
Kathleen R
Parker
,
Ph.D., APRN-BC
Nursing Education
Oklahoma City VA Medical Center
Oklahoma City
,
OK
United States
Dr. Parker is a highly intuitive leader; she takes the time to listen and understand her employees’ strengths and weaknesses. She is masterful at reminding us of our bigger purpose when we sometimes start waxing and waning about the things we can’t change and control.
I am honored to nominate Dr. Kathleen Parker for this prestigious DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award. She holds the title as OKC VAHCS Chief of Nursing Education and Health Trainees Director. She should be recognized as career achievement award and should be recognized for all her accomplishments and contributions to the VA Health Care System. Dr. Parker is an accomplished practitioner and educator. Dr. Parker’s career spans from maternal child to Veteran’s care, from community care clinics to federal corrections, and across public and private practice. Dr. Parker is also a published investigator and serves on the local IRB. Dr. Parker has been a leader in the VA for over twenty-six years, providing direct Veteran services, developing programs, activating clinical services, and building new programs and processes. During her 26.5-year career at VA, she has accomplished many things. Her accolades include national, local, and personal accomplishments.
In my program specifically, the RN Transition to Practice Program (RNTTP), Dr. Parker is engaging and often communicates changes to ensure new nurses succeed. She examined the feedback and experiences for herself what was happening to the new nurses and was a pioneer for change. She strategically restructured the year-long program to give new nurses what they needed upfront in those first critical months and then intermittently throughout the program. This change has given the new nurses the tools needed for success and transition sooner rather than later. She got the buy-in from Leadership and Nursing Management, and because of this change, we have gone from a 33% retention of new RNs in their first year to a 95% retention rate. We now have some former RNTTPs in key nursing leadership roles in the VA community. The program continues to thrive and is always getting better.
Personally, I’d like to focus on how she is as a leader. Dr. Parker is a highly intuitive leader; she takes the time to listen and understand her employees’ strengths and weaknesses. She is masterful at reminding us of our bigger purpose when we sometimes start waxing and waning about the things we can’t change and control. She constantly challenges us to look deeper inside and examine ourselves first and foremost before we over-examine others and their actions. She is an excellent mentor and provides us with the resources and connections needed to pave our own way on our professional journey. She possesses just the right balance of boss, mentor, and life coach. I have the utmost respect for her mind and how she leads people. I believe that during my time at VA, I have grown significantly and am becoming the best version of myself because of my excellent leader. She has high expectations of her team and knows that people will rise to meet it. She is an avid reader, learner, and listener. I feel like those attributes put her miles ahead of others. I feel like these attributes continually help her stay in tune with what’s going on and in turn helps us get the job done in the most effective way. She is truly a transformational leader, and I’m living, breathing proof of this.
In my program specifically, the RN Transition to Practice Program (RNTTP), Dr. Parker is engaging and often communicates changes to ensure new nurses succeed. She examined the feedback and experiences for herself what was happening to the new nurses and was a pioneer for change. She strategically restructured the year-long program to give new nurses what they needed upfront in those first critical months and then intermittently throughout the program. This change has given the new nurses the tools needed for success and transition sooner rather than later. She got the buy-in from Leadership and Nursing Management, and because of this change, we have gone from a 33% retention of new RNs in their first year to a 95% retention rate. We now have some former RNTTPs in key nursing leadership roles in the VA community. The program continues to thrive and is always getting better.
Personally, I’d like to focus on how she is as a leader. Dr. Parker is a highly intuitive leader; she takes the time to listen and understand her employees’ strengths and weaknesses. She is masterful at reminding us of our bigger purpose when we sometimes start waxing and waning about the things we can’t change and control. She constantly challenges us to look deeper inside and examine ourselves first and foremost before we over-examine others and their actions. She is an excellent mentor and provides us with the resources and connections needed to pave our own way on our professional journey. She possesses just the right balance of boss, mentor, and life coach. I have the utmost respect for her mind and how she leads people. I believe that during my time at VA, I have grown significantly and am becoming the best version of myself because of my excellent leader. She has high expectations of her team and knows that people will rise to meet it. She is an avid reader, learner, and listener. I feel like those attributes put her miles ahead of others. I feel like these attributes continually help her stay in tune with what’s going on and in turn helps us get the job done in the most effective way. She is truly a transformational leader, and I’m living, breathing proof of this.