In a 1945 letter to Vice Admiral and Surgeon General of the Navy Ross McIntire, Barney Brooks, MD, the first chair of the Department of Surgery at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, wrote: “I feel quite sure that a nine months’ service on a general surgical ward much better qualifies a man for independent duties at sea than on any other service or combination of services.” (source: History of Medicine Collections, Eskind Biomedical Library)
Sentiments today echo this thought, as Vanderbilt University Medical Center has remained steadfast in supporting our nation’s veterans and particularly in assisting in training and sustaining the readiness of active-duty military medical personnel through military-civilian partnerships.
During a visit to the Medical Center by Maj. Gen. Anthony L. McQueen, Deputy Surgeon General of the United States Army, C. Wright Pinson, MBA, MD, Deputy CEO and Chief Health System Officer told him, “We are well aware that there are a lot of geopolitical issues out there today. We’re extremely grateful to our military colleagues for handling those issues for us. We understand the role you play, we value what you do, and we thank you. Anything we can do to help you meet your mission we want to do.”
U.S. Army Colonel and orthopaedic trauma surgeon Daniel Stinner, MD, PhD, serves as vice chair of VUMC’s Military Affairs Committee. Bradley Dennis, MD, associate professor of Surgery in the Division of Acute Care Surgery, serves as chair.
Formed in 2020, the committee plans and oversees the implementation of military-civilian collaborative programs at VUMC to ensure goals are met for both partners. Stinner has seen countless examples of the Medical Center’s support for our nation’s veterans and for active-duty military.
“Vanderbilt is an extremely welcoming environment for military personnel, and you see that all over campus,” said Stinner. “The relationship and support that military personnel have here is one of the main reasons I’ve stayed here for the past seven years, and it’s one of the reasons I plan to stay after I retire from the military.”
Rich Ellis, President of Vanderbilt Tullahoma-Harton Hospital, logged nearly 21 years of military service before retiring as a commander in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve. His duties including serving as the Coast Guard liaison to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and in leadership roles for disaster response, including Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.
His military experience prepared him well for leadership roles in the civilian workplace, and for many years he was on active reserve duty while working full time in the health care industry.
“Military service really helps you understand the need to put others first, to put the team first, and the mission first and to really focus on how you can support frontline team members as well as team members throughout the organization,” Ellis said.
It also helped me learn how to better assist others in understanding the goals or the missions that we’re pursuing. With Vanderbilt that’s easier to do because we have such a great mission, and the system leadership does a fantastic job of explaining where we’re headed and why we’re headed there.”
VUMC also has a Veterans Resource Group (VRG), open to membership to all employees with military service and employees interested in supporting those with service. The VRG hosts events to encourage collaboration and learning, as well as an active mentoring program that helps military service employees navigate their careers.
“The VRG provides newly hired veterans a welcoming, supportive community where they can share experiences, advance their careers, and develop as leaders,” said Megan Youngblood, Associate Vice President at Vanderbilt Health Services, Army veteran and executive sponsor of the VRG. “It also serves as a home base and connection point for established veterans in the Medical Center, acting as a conduit for feedback to organizational leadership on issues important to veterans.”
Samantha (Sam) Agee, CRNA, who now works in the Division of Multispecialty Anesthesiology, participated in the Department of Defense SkillBridge/Career Skills Program (CSP), a program that helps military members more easily transition into careers as civilians. She served in the Army from 1996 until retiring as a lieutenant colonel in 2023. She was trained as a combat medic and worked in military medical settings as a medical surgical nurse and an intensive care nurse, ultimately earning her certification as a nurse anesthetist. She worked as a military CRNA beginning in 2012.
Agee did several internships in the civilian world during her last months of service and came to shadow CRNAs at VUMC. Her husband, Willie Agee, III, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Anesthesiology, had completed his residency and fellowship at the Medical Center and was hired in the Division of Neuroanesthesiology, so the choice made sense.
She joined VUMC in September 2023. Agee has been able to call upon her skills from her time in service to enhance regional anesthesia provided to hospitalized patients with acute pain, such as might be experienced before or after surgery.
“I was selected for a pilot program working with the Acute Pain Service team – working with anesthesiologists and with residents – to build a cohort for the CRNAs to deliver regional anesthesia,” she said.
Agee said she feels like a valued team member, and the overwhelmingly welcoming atmosphere she’s found at VUMC helped her know she had found a home.
“I felt as if I was coming into another family – different from the military, but still with that family feel,” Agee said. “It’s been wonderful.”
