Courtesy Photo | Maj. Kym Su Whitaker, an Army Reserve nurse practitioner from Colorado Springs, Colo....... read more read more
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“Looking back on the mission and my experience at DHR Health I’m reminded how blessed I am to be able to serve as a nurse,” said Army Reserve Maj. Kym Su Whitaker. “We shouldn’t take our health and gift of family for granted.”
Whitaker, a nurse practitioner from Colorado Springs, Colorado discussing her experience serving with Urban Augmentation Medical Task Force-7452 assigned to assist DHR Health in Edinburg, Texas as part of the Department of Defense support to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s response to COVID-19 in South Texas.
Whitaker, a nurse practitioner, served in a COVID-19 unit at the Rio Grande Valley hospital.
“My role was advocate for patients and their families to keep them actively involved in making, sometimes difficult, medical care decisions throughout their hospitalization,” she explained.
“Additionally, I helped with medications for symptoms, such as pain or distress that may be experienced during a prolonged hospital illness.”
“The DHR group entrusted me as an extension of their team,’ she said. “In the COVID unit I could utilize my prior palliative ICU experience.”
Whitaker’s position had her assisting the most critically ill. She explained the role of her team for patients unable to have family with them in their final days of life.
“While patient’s families were not allowed to be at their bedside, our Soldiers often served as the patient’s support person.”
Whitaker provided counsel to those on her team that were new to this environment.
“No family is allowed at the bedside, you are the patient’s support now and they put their trust in you,” she explained to the Soldiers that served with her. “Say their name, often. Make sure we introduce ourselves, even if they are sedated. We are all they have until they can leave the hospital and each of you will make an impact in the life of a patient and their family, even if you doubt it.”
In her civilian capacity, Whitaker currently serves as a family nurse practitioner on an Air Force Base in Colorado Springs.
“I am blessed that my employer, clinic team and patients have been supportive of my short notice departure,” she said. “Many of my colleagues and patients are also military or prior military, so they truly understand the unexpected nature of responding to short notice military missions. They often send me messages of support and constantly ask if I need anything, which I don’t, but the gesture is really appreciated.”
Born in Seoul, South Korea, Whitaker was adopted as an infant to an American military family. She spent much of her childhood overseas due to her father’s service, Col. William S. Littlefield (retired). She considers Heidelberg, Germany her hometown.
It was her father’s and her husband’s, Air Force Maj. Mark Whitaker (retired), service that led her to join the military.
“As a Korean-American adoptee, I have been blessed with the unique experience of growing up overseas with supportive family to pursue an education in nursing,” she explained. “It is with great pride that I can follow behind my dad and my husband’s military service.”
She credits her husband, Mark, for the support he provided her when she made a career change to become a nurse. She earned her degree at University of Wyoming, followed by a Masters of Science in nursing with focus in public health from Benedictine University in Illinois. Most recently she earned a post-graduate family nurse practitioner certification from South University in Georgia.
“Joining the U.S. Army Reserve Nurse Corps in 2009 at age 38, was the next logical step in my nursing career, it allows me to not only serve this great nation, but the privilege of providing healthcare to the fighting men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces and their families,” stated Whitaker.
“As a new Soldier with only three years of experience as a nurse, the Army gave me the opportunity to meet dedicated service members, who were leaders in both their military and civilian occupations, that offered me mentorship for cultivating my nursing career and furthering my education, which gave me the confidence to now serve as an advanced practice nurse in my own community.”
Married for 22 years, Whitaker and her husband have three children, Hannah, Madeleine, and Hayden. The family’s three pets; a Doberman Pincher named Daisy, and two Maine Coon cats, Hiro and Zeus, round out the Whitaker family.
“My family and parents are very proud of me and I am grateful for their support. My absences are not always convenient,” shared Whitaker.
She explained that in her absence, her husband has helped her daughter moved into the dorms for her first year of college, has been assisting their youngest with his virtual schooling, and is managing the construction process of a home they are building, having closed on the purchase the day she left for mobilization.
“I am able to continue to serve because of my family’s selfless support, as they are truly the ones who make the sacrifice during my absence.”
In total, U.S. Northern Command assigned approximately 590 military medical and support personnel from the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy to support the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Texas.
As Whitaker prepares to return home, she has an important mission left to accomplish before leaving Texas. “For my family, the tradition is, whenever one of us comes back from somewhere after an extended absence, we always bring back a small gift, and it can’t be from the airport gift shop,” she shared.
As UAMTF 7452 departed Edinburg, Texas, mission complete, Whitaker shared some final reflections over the past six weeks.
“Being on the ‘front lines’ for the first time, I am humbled to serve next to some of the most selfless nurses, doctors, medics and allied health providers who left their families and communities to respond to this emergency,” she said. “It has been quite inspiring to witness my colleagues demonstrate their leadership, professionalism and their expert procedural skills while ensuring morale and compassion to all of the patients and staff, just like this was their own community.”
| Date Taken: | 09.18.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 09.21.2020 18:38 |
| Story ID: | 378316 |
| Location: | EDINBURG, TX, US |
| Hometown: | HEIDELBERG, BW, DE |
| Hometown: | SEOUL, 11, KR |
| Hometown: | COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US |
| Web Views: | 391 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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