AROUND TINKER: Three earn 72nd ABW Wildcatter Awards Published Oct. 23, 2014 By Staff Report 72nd Air Base Wing TINKER AIR FORCE BASE - Okla. -- Three members of the 72nd Medical Group were recently honored with Wildcatter Awards. Capt. Diana Kofron has performed her duties as a pediatric nurse practitioner in the Pediatric Clinic since September 2013. During this time, she has quickly become a proven performer, providing outstanding healthcare during 3,600 patient visits, generating $262,000 in revenue while driving pediatric access to care up 37 percent in her first three months. As a process improvement expert, Captain Kofron streamlined the well-baby booking process, boosting wellness compliance by 6 percent in six months, the 72nd MDG's highest level in five years. Captain Kofron educated 13 new parents on newborn care and trained 45 youth center staff on preventative medicine, ensuring the safety of 130 base children. She was pivotal to the installation flu program, personally vaccinating 550 active duty while ensuring Tinker surpassed the Air Force Surgeon General's goal of 90 percent in only five weeks, garnering No. 2 of nine flu programs in Air Force Materiel Command. Furthermore, the captain was hand-selected by the 72nd MDG commander to roll out the new ICD-10 world-wide coding standards to 60 providers, ensuring national guidelines were met. A superb clinician, she quickly identified a seriously ill child and provided stabilizing treatment while facilitating transfer to a local emergency room ensuring lifesaving interventions were provided. Captain Kofron was vital in preparing her flight staff for the 72nd ABW Unit Effectiveness Inspection contributing to a "Highly Effective" rating. She also hit the ground running during the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care inspections securing the three-year accreditation recertification status for the Medical Group. Staff Sgt. Morris Belmon is a member of the 72nd MDG's Public Health Flight. He directly supervises eight personnel in three different major sections. He excelled as the interim flight chief for three weeks, keeping 26 staff members, two elements and 25 programs on target while sustaining a 99.5 percent occupational exam compliance rate for 23,000 personnel in 240 workplaces, resulting in best in AFMC compliance. Sergeant Belmon also stepped up as the Public Health lead for the 2014 airshow, training 20 supervisors and leading a team of 19 inspectors, safeguarding more than 165,000 attendees from potential foodborne illness. Additionally, he coordinated the 2014 Food Vulnerability Assessment with Joint Staff Integrated Vulnerability Assessment inspectors, inspecting 18 food facilities, communicating security weaknesses and mitigating risks. He ensured the certification for 19 Public Health technicians, ensuring their ability to meet ongoing vulnerability assessment criteria. Going above and beyond the required standard, Sergeant Belmon benchmarked a new product inspection process for commissary donations to the local community, facilitating 16,000 pounds of donated food. Jessica Borges has been the assistant budget analyst and data quality manager for the 72nd MDG since November 2013. She immediately leapt into the budget analyst role, managing a $30 million budget, meeting all AFMOA and wing suspenses during the two months the medical group's lead budget analyst was unavailable. As an effective advocate, Ms. Borges facilitated a new process to track patient encounters, resulting in a 98 percent improvement over three months and recovering approximately $17,000. Ms. Borges developed a comprehensive reimbursement strategy, helping the medical group recoup $2.3 million. She holds the highest accountability standards for the $173,000 Government Purchase Card program across four flights, ensuring accurate records for future audits.