I am so proud of Lisa's perseverance and the unending dedication that she has shown in our department and believe she is deserving of this recognition award. She truly embodies the UPMC core values, and these past few years have led our led with enthusiasm and grace through periods of severe staffing shortages and the recent pandemic. She leads by DOING, always putting the needs of our patients first. 
 
Lisa has been a very integral part of our team serving as one of our primary collaborative RNs to our Women's Surgical Gynecology Oncology team. As she steps foot into the department each day, she hits the ground running and never stops caring for our patients that so desperately need her expertise and guidance. Lisa serves daily as the primary RN in the clinic, and cancer center, and answers numerous, endless phone calls. Lisa never hesitates to assist our patients through their oncology journey and thinks nothing of spending up to an hour or more with a patient on the phone trying to tend to their needs after a lengthy surgery when they have no one else to turn to for support or answers. On many occasions. she will connect with all of the ancillary support involved with their post-operative care and go above and beyond to assist with their surgical recovery, medication questions, and post-operative care including wound care that involves getting supplies that seems like an endless task due to insurance glitches. 

On many occasions, Lisa will assist patients who are diagnosed with a new blood clot which involves numerous phone calls to assist with getting the patient the safest, and most cost-effective, treatment. I have witnessed Lisa spending endless time doing so, and she does it will grace and diligence to assure the patient's needs are taken care of. 
 
Lisa thinks nothing of spending longer hours than scheduled to make sure phone calls are answered timely with the end goal of preventing any patient complications, whether it be from their chemotherapy treatment or surgery.  Her triaging skills are outstanding, and she has spared many of our patients a likely devastating complication due to her sharp critical thinking skills. On many occasions, in the absence of a physician or APP, Lisa will need to send a patient to the ER for a concerning emergency. Due to her persistent quick intervention skills, many unforeseen, emergencies have been avoided. 
 
Lisa continued to push through when times were tough, such as the pandemic, and supported any reasonable request working long hours to maintain our team's ability to continue providing outstanding patient care. Lisa also took on the additional role as the surgical scheduler for almost one full year in the absence of another employee on leave, while never missing a beat, completing both jobs with excellence. 
 
Lisa's communication skills are exceptional, and she is consistently kind, caring, and empathetic to our patient population that is dealing with a cancer diagnosis. She is respectful of every patient's unique situation and never places judgement, but rather always reaches out with a solution.  Lisa's dedication to her job, her team, and her profession is unparalleled. She consistently puts her patient's needs first. 
 
These are but a small number of the efforts put forth by this top-notch team member. Lisa brings excellence, innovation, responsibility, and integrity into everything she does with quiet capability, truly an unsung hero in the department. My personal goal is to see that her praises are sung!