February 2005 Frontline - Commissioned Officers Association

CALL FOR AWARDS NOMINATIONS
Mabel May
Wagner Award
This award, established in 1979, is
open to all professional nurses in
the PHS who are engaged in clinical
nursing practice. The award
consists of an engraved plaque and
$1000 in cash. The award is presented
annually to a professional nurse in the
Public Health Service (Commissioned
Corps and Civil Service) who:
• Exemplifies resourcefulness and
dedication in helping to accomplish
the mission of the Public Health
Services;
• Demonstrates professional and technical
skills and competence raising
the quality of nursing;
• Displays evidence of exceptional
ability to apply nursing standards of
practice;
• Remains involved in continuing
education as a participant, organizer
or sponsor of it;
• Is of such excellence as to merit
Public Health Service recognition.
Nominations:
Nominations may be made by an
HHS employee or employee where the
nurse officer is detailed, in the form of
a letter (limited to two pages)
containing:
• name, title and grade of the
nominee;
• work experience and educational
background of the nominee;
• a brief description of the nominee’s
present duties and responsibilities
including the scope of work;
• a narrative statement of how the
person meets the criteria for the
award including a description of the
specific accomplishments and/or
contributions on which the nomination
is based as well as exploring
current practice vs. lifetime achievement.
The achievements for which
the nurse is being recognized should
be within the last three years.
• Must state, in writing, that the individual
is in good standing and has
an active RN license on file (for
Commissioned Corps officers in
must be on file with DCP); and
• an endorsement by the nominee’s
supervisor (responsible for ensuring
the candidate’s good standing and
work performance) and the final
verification (for the recommended
award recipient) will be by the Chief
Nurse Officer (who will check with
DCP to ensure that there are no
outstanding actions and that an
active license is on file)
• Award nominations should be
limited to two pages.
A Message from the Medical Affairs Branch
On behalf of the Medical Affairs
Branch (MAB), I would like to
thank all PHS Commissioned
Corps officers for your admirable
contributions put forth while serving
in the Public Health Service (PHS).
The MAB staff recognizes and appreciates
your unrelenting efforts to
serve our country and devotes to put
forth the same level of energy and
commitment while tending to your
healthcare and administrative needs.
Furthermore, we would like to take
this opportunity to express our gratitude
to all of the wonderful family
members for their sacrifices and
pledge our unwavering support to
them alike.
I would also like to assure you
that the MAB is continuously looking
for ways to optimize the quality of
services rendered to our customers.
We work closely with the supportive
leadership teams of the Program
Support Center (PSC) and the PHS
to align objectives in favor of the
population we serve and contribute to
the mission of these (and other) military
and government agencies.
In order to review, coordinate and
make determination(s) related to your
medical affairs, it is paramount that
all documentation, medical evidence,
non-medical assessments, etc. are
submitted to the MAB in a complete
and timely fashion. Any variation of
such will most likely delay progress
and can hinder the ability to make
fully informed decisions in an expeditious
manner. Please be advised that
it is highly encouraged for all healthcare
beneficiaries to maintain copies
of health related documents for their
personal records. On the rare
instance that a document is
misplaced, lost in transition, etc. you
may be called upon to produce such
an item(s) if the need should arise.
Meticulous record keeping on our end
and yours will provide a “checks and
balances” system that will virtually
eliminate the possibility of un-retrievable
medical documentation.
Most importantly, I would like to
stress the fact that “We are here to
serve you!” If you need assistance,
have questions, suggestions or
concerns, please feel free to contact
us at your earliest convenience
during normal business hours at the
contact information listed below.
Last, but certainly not least, we
would like to thank the
Commissioned Officer’s Association
(COA) for affording us the opportunity
to provide guidance and
communicate through this
newsletter. The COA truly plays a
vital role in the success of today’s
Public Health Service.
Very Respectfully,
Russell J. Garisto, CHE
Chief, Medical Affairs Branch
Phone: 301-594-6300
or 1-800-368-2777 ext 0
Fax: 301-594-2973 or
1-800-733-1303
6 COMMISSIONED OFFICERS ASSOCIATION