Vicki Taylor truly exemplifies what it means to be a DAISY nurse. In every encounter that Vicki has with patients and families, she displays excellence in nursing practice.

At Operation Breakthrough, Vicki functions as both a clinic nurse and a school nurse. She goes to each classroom everyday and assesses any child that needs nursing care. When I have gone on rounds with Vicki, all of the children get so excited when they see her and come up to ask her for a hug. The care and compassion that she shows the children at Operation Breakthrough and their families has helped build strong relationships. Children crowd around her and get excited to see her because they know she will care for them when other factors in their life may be very scary and uncertain. Vicki does a great job of staying on top of their nursing and medical needs and coordinating their current and ongoing healthcare needs. Vicki's love and compassion for the patients and their families does not just end in the clinic.

We recently had a pregnant mother that needed help getting her child's car seat to the car. Vicki helped the mom take the car seat to the car and noted that there was glass all over the back seat. The mom had three children under the age of five, two of which she had riding in the front seat because someone recently tried breaking into her car and the glass was all over the back seat. Without hesitation, Vicki found something she could use to get the glass out of the car so that the children could sit in the back and also duct taped the window so that they would not get wet with the oncoming storm. Vicki's actions almost brought the mom to tears as she thanked her for her help.

This is only one of the many life changing encounters that Vicki has with the patients and families at Operation Breakthrough. Vicki is not just a nurse, she is a superhero to so many of the patients and families here - one most deserving of many DAISY Awards.