Wilford Hall nurse honored for leadership in the San Antonio community Published Oct. 19, 2010 By Linda Frost 59th Medical Wing Public Affairs LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- The commander of the 59th Inpatient Operations Group here is the recipient of the 2010 Women's Leadership Award in the public service education category. Col. Amy Bachelor is one of 18 women recognized by the San Antonio Business Journal for outstanding leadership. The award was presented Oct. 8 at the Oak Hills Country Club in San Antonio, Texas. There were nearly 100 nominees for the awards. The women's leadership award recognizes women for their contributions to the economy, advancements in business, helping make improvements in the community and through volunteer work and nonprofit organizations. As a leader of approximately 1,000 military and civilian nursing professionals, Colonel Bachelor is the commander of the only Nurse Corps Inpatient Group in the Air Force. She directs a leadership team of 16 executive managers and 25 middle managers and oversees a $35 million budget and $18.5 million in contracts annually. Colonel Bachelor's says her philosophy is to "mentor, role model, motivate and take care of people." "I love being a nurse and I have always enjoyed patient care," said Colonel Bachelor. "But now, in a leadership role, my job is to take care of those who take care of patients." The impact of her leadership is felt worldwide. She is also responsible for the readiness, training and deployment of 250 nursing staff who support combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as multiple humanitarian missions to around the world. "The outstanding care provided to these soldiers, sailors, Airmen and marines directly contributed to a 98 percent combat injury survival rate--the highest in U.S. history," said Lt. Col. Judy Gavin, commander, 59th Training Squadron, who prepared the nomination package. Colonel Bachelor's greatest accomplishment for the San Antonio military medical community is her role as the Base Realignment and Closure Commission Air Force Integration Lead for Nursing, combining over 1,000 nursing personnel at Wilford Hall Medical Center with nursing staff at Brooke Army Medical Center, Ft. Sam Houston. "As a key architect and joint nursing team builder, she is the face of Air Force nursing, forging the best practices of the largest two medical centers in the Department of Defense," Colonel Gavin said. "She is literally writing the script for joint medical operations in the future and her efforts have been hailed by the Secretary of the Air Force." Colonel Bachelor also oversees Wilford Hall's Education and Training Division, which trains more than 6,000 staff annually. Despite the complexity of all her responsibilities and the roles that she plays as a leader at Wilford Hall, her leadership style is cemented firmly in a foundation built on a "back to basics in patient care" approach to nursing. "As part of a 'back to basics in patient care campaign,' she has raised patient care standards by tirelessly teaching middle managers about Joint Commission and Air Force Health Services standards," Colonel Gavin added. "She relentlessly educates her nursing staff to ensure they know the standards, understand their importance, and holds their people accountable to apply and enforce them."