Vicki Tempel was nominated twice. Dr. Marta Spain said:

I dearly appreciate all that Vicki does for our patients, many of whom have complicated surgeries related to a possible or known cancer diagnosis. When we arrive in the morning to greet our patient and their family before surgery, Vicki has already oriented them to the hospital's resources and familiarized them with the way in which we communicate about their loved one's progress in surgery. Vicki checks in to the OR periodically, ever so quietly (I've nicknamed her Stealth Vicki), to learn about our progress and expectations for continuation and conclusion of surgery. She is our ambassador to the family, always conveying our caring concern. I feel well represented by Vicki and respected by her. She has a gentle way of informing and educating our patients and their families. I only wish I had worked with Vicki for many more years in my career!

Also, Vicki was nominated by Kim Seggebruch, RN and Traci Watson, RN who said:

Vicki Tempel is a wonderful, warm, and caring nurse. As a cardiovascular OR nurse for 20 years, she has provided exceptional quality care to thousands of patients. For the past five years, Vicki has mastered the role of nurse liaison. She is such a compassionate nurse who helps the families of our surgical patients through worrisome and sometimes long and stressful waiting periods.

Providing excellent customer service, she works diligently to keep patients informed of delays and families updated during their loved one’s time in surgery. She deals will all kinds of difficult situations and family dynamics while always maintaining a calming and comforting demeanor. From comforting parents watching their child being taken to their first surgery to updating trauma victims’ families on their family members’ condition, she is always a patient advocate protecting their privacy and dignity.

She instills confidence in our patients and their families, reassuring them preoperatively of the excellent care they will receive while in OR. She can be heard every morning telling patients and their family members “it is Traci’s (calling the nurse by name) job to take care of the patient, and it is my job to take care of you”.

With the extensive knowledge of the OR, Vicki provides family members with information to prepare them for the first time they see their loved one postoperatively. A friend of mine was recently a patient here for cardiac bypass. His wife and children said Vicki was a “Godsend, she gave us more information each time she came to see us…kept us posted on how surgery was going, helped us to know what to expect when we see our loved one for the first time in ICU”. “We don’t know how we would have reacted had she not prepared us for all the machines, tubes, and drains we would see”.

Traci, a current CVOR nurse, was recently approached by a woman while shopping. This woman recognized Traci as her husband’s OR nurse. She expressed wonderful compliments about her entire OR experience and that of her loved one. The one thing she admired the most was Vicki Tempel and the way she made her family feel so safe, secure and informed during the care her loved one received.