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Medical Group employee named best in Air Force

By Valerie Mullett, 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs Office / Published April 08, 2009

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MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. -- Renae Hutchins, the director of TRICARE operations for the 341st Medical Support Squadron here, has been named the Air Force Health Benefits Advisor of the Year for 2008. Her exceptional duty providing service to the beneficiaries and disseminating information to them while excelling in her daily duties is what earned her this distinction.

Specifically, Mrs. Hutchins was a crucial part of gaining access to local civilian medical facilities' electronic medical records for the clinic staff. This increased the result return rate by 85 percent, according to her award package. She was also instrumental in acquiring specialty durable medical equipment for an active-duty member, which gave him back his mobility.

Over the course of the award period, 227 medical evaluation boards were processed in the 30-day time frame for a 100 percent on-time rate, exceeding the standards.

She eased the transition to specialty care for more than 400 patients needing services immediately and managed a "colossal" referral program processing 1,800 referrals a month for other patients. This also entailed tracking those referrals to a 90 and 95 percentile respectively, exceeding the standards set.

Some of the other accomplishments Mrs. Hutchins achieved included establishing contracts with an audiology firm to specifically assist retirees; being hand-picked as a member of the medical group strategic planning team; resolving more than 400 patient complaints; standardizing the medical group appointment line policies; and being the liaison with local civilian providers.

"Renae processed more than 400 patient concerns and consistently maintained a patient satisfaction rating over 90 percent," said Lt. Col. Duane Bragg, 341st MDSS commander. "This is a direct result of the care she takes in working with our beneficiaries and the deep concern she has for ensuring the medical group does what we are supposed to do when it comes to treating our patients."

Mrs. Hutchins says she stays very busy with walk-in customers and phone calls, answering benefits questions, helping with claims problems and offering historical knowledge, along with all of her regular day-to-day duties.

But she is modest in what singled her out as the best in the Air Force.

"I have worked in this capacity for 18 years," she said. "When you have that much experience in a job, you learn how to handle almost everything that comes up. Because of that, I am able to help people in a variety of ways and handle a variety of situations."

Asked what her goals are for 2009, the award winner simply said, "To continue to do my job the best I can."
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