VA Employee Wins President's SAVE Award

A clerk for the Colorado Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Grand Junction, Colo., got a trip to Washington and meeting with President Barack Obama for submitting an idea that may save the government an estimated $3.8 million a year.

Nancy P. Fichtner, a fiscal program support clerk at the medical center, met Obama yesterday when she became the first recipient of the President’s SAVE Award – for Security Americans Value and Efficiency.

Fichtner’s winning suggestion was that VA hospital permit discharged patients to take home with them the medications they’ve already been given in the hospital instead of dumping them. According to the VA, the dumping policy is one followed by most hospitals across the country.

In a telephone conference with reporters after the meeting, Fichtner called the meeting “a real honor” and said she was excited that “it’s gonna happen.”

“I have many family members that [served],” she said. “I’m there for the veterans. It’s more than a job for me. I’m just happy I can do something for them.”

Kenneth Baer, communications director for the Office of Management and Budget, told Military.com during the conference that preliminary estimates indicate the government could save $3.8 million a year under the new policy.

“It could be significantly more, it could be close to that or it could be some other figure,” Baer said. “We really won’t know until we get into it and evaluate it.”

In a statement issued after Fichtner’s meeting with Obama, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said her idea “will not only help save tax dollars, but also help deliver better care for veterans who have dedicated t heir lives to ensure our freedom and prosperity.”

The SAVE Award competition was announced by Obama in April. It will be held annually.
 
Among other top entries that are going to be adopted:

* The Social Security Administration, at the suggestion of an Alabama agency employee, plans to enable recipients or applicants for services to make appointments online.

* The Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to streamline its inspections program by training individuals to inspect a range of housing structures instead of specializing in specific types. That idea was suggested by a Social Security employee in Alaska.