A First Army chief nurse of clinical operations has been recognized with an exclusive honor.
Maj. Nicole Evans is a 2024 Army Medical Department Iron Major. The distinction goes to those who have demonstrated commitment, focus, and excellence in their fields. Honorees attended the Iron Majors Week March 18-22 at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, to further hone their skills and work on professional and personal development.
“It focused on some of the day-to-day work we might see at the next level,” Evans explained. “One of our challenges was to work through a complex situation and brief the proposed solution.”
Iron Majors Week enables attendees to be better prepared for their future roles and responsibilities within the military health care system. Sessions were held on a variety of topics that will be relevant as they move forward in their careers, such as Defense Health Agency Lines of Effort, resourcing readiness, and Holistic Health fitness.
In recommending her for the honor, First Army Command Surgeon, Col. Sean Hipp, wrote, “Maj. Evans is at the tip of the spear enabling ready force projection for the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers through First Army, thus supporting my recommendation for her selection for the AMEDD Arroyo Center Fellowship.”
Hipp broke down the specifics of how Evans has contributed to First Army’s mission and readiness.
“As the Chief of Clinical Operations for the 3-star multi-component First Army Headquarters, Maj. Evans strategic and operational understanding of the mission has allowed her to achieve unparalleled success building connections across all three U.S. Army Components that will be sustained beyond her time at First Army,” he wrote. “Her work ethic, character, drive, and resourcefulness has allowed her to accept and accomplish the most demanding tasks, which she always executes without hesitation. Maj. Evans is the number one major I have rated in my 18-year career. I depend on her daily for guidance and is my subject matter expert on medical mobilization readiness.”
Evans described it as humbling to be so nominated and selected.
“I would like to thank Col. Hipp, Mr. Bill Carter, and the team for mentoring me and for their guidance,” she said.
Activities during Iron Majors Week included: Participation in general officer leadership professional development briefings; exposure to enterprise knowledge that demonstrates a sound understanding of organizational stewardship and systems level thinking; fostering leadership development and management skills; expanding professional networks for collaboration and career advancement; heightening perspective on problem solving, best practices, and learning more about Large-Scale Combat Operations.