Theresa "Tess" Stanley
January 2024
Theresa "Tess"
Stanley
,
NP
GI Clinic
Southern AZ VA Health Care System
Tucson
,
AZ
United States
She treated me with compassion and understood I was worried about him.
I would like to recognize NP Theresa Stanley for her outstanding care she gave myself and my husband that started by a phone call last month.
I called the VA regarding discharge paperwork my husband got from a recent colonoscopy. The phone number did not go to the GI clinic but to the ER. I apologized and asked to be transferred to the GI clinic. When I was transferred, Tess answered the phone politely and asked how she could help. I was apologetic that I got her by mistake and was meaning to reach the front desk.
Tess did not bat an eyelash and asked what was going on. I told her my husband had a colonoscopy the day prior and was not feeling well. He was weak, not getting out of bed, and I could not read the discharge paperwork that was given to him as far as any findings. Tess asked if she could speak to my husband before we talked a little more and I took the phone to him. He granted permission and we continued our conversation. Tess read me what was in my husband’s chart regarding his procedure and cleared up questions from the discharge paperwork. Tess asked specific questions to ensure I did not need to take him into the ER that day.
I explained we had been dealing with stomach issues in my husband for over a year and he had been needing a GI consult, so I asked Tess what I needed to do to get him seen by a specialist. Tess quietly responded, “you just did it. I am placing a consultation for him to come see me as we speak.”
I could tell that she really was concerned for him. She looked at her schedule and we confirmed a time and date on the spot to have him come see her. She treated me with compassion and understood I was worried about him.
I cried as we talked on the phone out of excitement that he was getting the appointment. We have had bad luck since we moved here two years ago but Tess has restored my faith in the VA system. I am an advocate for my husband and feel very strongly about the care he receives.
When we went to my husband’s appointment with Tess, she remembered him from our phone conversation and we picked up where we left off. She told him “I feel like I already know you.”
She is special and I cannot tell you how much I appreciate the time she took with me that day on the phone as well as the genuine care she has for my husband.
I know she is this way with every Veteran that walks in her door, but she makes us feel like we are the only ones!
I called the VA regarding discharge paperwork my husband got from a recent colonoscopy. The phone number did not go to the GI clinic but to the ER. I apologized and asked to be transferred to the GI clinic. When I was transferred, Tess answered the phone politely and asked how she could help. I was apologetic that I got her by mistake and was meaning to reach the front desk.
Tess did not bat an eyelash and asked what was going on. I told her my husband had a colonoscopy the day prior and was not feeling well. He was weak, not getting out of bed, and I could not read the discharge paperwork that was given to him as far as any findings. Tess asked if she could speak to my husband before we talked a little more and I took the phone to him. He granted permission and we continued our conversation. Tess read me what was in my husband’s chart regarding his procedure and cleared up questions from the discharge paperwork. Tess asked specific questions to ensure I did not need to take him into the ER that day.
I explained we had been dealing with stomach issues in my husband for over a year and he had been needing a GI consult, so I asked Tess what I needed to do to get him seen by a specialist. Tess quietly responded, “you just did it. I am placing a consultation for him to come see me as we speak.”
I could tell that she really was concerned for him. She looked at her schedule and we confirmed a time and date on the spot to have him come see her. She treated me with compassion and understood I was worried about him.
I cried as we talked on the phone out of excitement that he was getting the appointment. We have had bad luck since we moved here two years ago but Tess has restored my faith in the VA system. I am an advocate for my husband and feel very strongly about the care he receives.
When we went to my husband’s appointment with Tess, she remembered him from our phone conversation and we picked up where we left off. She told him “I feel like I already know you.”
She is special and I cannot tell you how much I appreciate the time she took with me that day on the phone as well as the genuine care she has for my husband.
I know she is this way with every Veteran that walks in her door, but she makes us feel like we are the only ones!