The 30-question retention survey, distributed to federal employees in April, garnered an 85 percent response rate.

ìWe believe that our WRAMC employees will remain with us, with the belief that the leadership will take care of them if they do remain,î Horoho said. ìWhat we didnít want was that the message to be sent to higher [command] that 74 percent are going to remain at Walter Reed without any special incentives.î

The top incentives selected by survey respondents included a one-time $25,000 bonus at the end of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC), a 25 percent of salary bonus, and a $10,000 annual student loan repayment plan.

ìWe at the leadership level absolutely will work very, very aggressively to get the right retention package in place to be able to properly incentivize you to remain with us, and then move to either [the new Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., or DeWitt Army Community Hospital at Fort Belvoir, Va.], so we can make sure we really do have an integrated health care delivery system within the National Capital Area,î Horoho said.

One hundred percent guaranteed placement and relocation for Walter Reed employees has been approved. When asked which facility they preferred for relocation, 65 percent of respondents selected WRNMMC.

Horoho said that was expected, since the majority of Walter Reed staff lives closer to Bethesda. She said there was concern about manning the proper mix of specialists at each of the facilities.

ìThereís the big concern over whether or not weíre going to have the right skill set and the right brain trust to be able to staff the 120-bed facility down at Fort Belvoir,î Horoho said.

Walter Reed is working with the Secretary of the Armyís human resources specialists to create an incentive package. Horoho said the staff will be informed of progress as it occurs.

Horoho also spoke about BRAC, medical service integration, and a new employee recognition program at a town hall meeting May 15.

According to the BRAC mandate, medical care currently provided at Walter Reed will be divided between WRNMMC and the expanded DeWitt.

Horoho said she wanted staffers, when they think of Walter Reed, to think of both facilities.

ìPart of our team will migrate north to the Bethesda campus to round out the new (WRNMMC), and part of the team and our capabilities are going south to the Fort Belvoir campus,î Horoho said.

Groundbreaking for WRNMMC is scheduled for June 25. Horoho said the completion of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) makes it possible for work to begin on the expansion of facilities at Bethesda.

The design-build contract for both new hospitals allows for some flexibility in design as construction moves forward at both sites.

Horoho said relocation of Walter Reedís centers of excellence is being studied carefully, with the goal of maintaining current levels of care. Some of the centers have been allotted less space in the new hospitals.

ìIt may not be the exact thing we have here,î Horoho said of the centers of excellence facilities. ìBut the right amount of space, configured to provide the same level of care at the same mission requirement.î Subject matter experts briefed the joint task force on integration and the Congressional House Armed Services Committee.

Quality, Understanding, Excellence, Safety and Teamwork (Q.U.E.S.T.) is the new employee recognition program. It is designed, according to Horoho, to reward Walter Reed staff who go above and beyond to provide a great therapeutic experience. The service themes of safety, courtesy, competence, compasion and connection to patients provide the basis of this program.

ìWhen you look at compassion, itís a very broad category,î Horoho said. Compassion includes everything from housekeepersí understanding that cleanliness improves the patientís experience to medical administratorsí understanding that patients want timely service in a customer-friendly, timely manner.

The first Q.U.E.S.T. awards ceremony is scheduled for May 27. This first team members, which is currently estimated at 34, will receive the first awards. Compliments from patients were the key selection factor.