Vicki Sandeen has been a member of the Surgical Services Team for over 20 years. Her practice includes functioning as a Charge Nurse, Surgical Scrub and Circulator. Vicki has performed as a team member for multiple specialties and is currently practicing on both the Cardiac and Transplant Teams.

Recently, while the operating room was exceptionally busy with transplants, there was a case scheduled in the offsite hybrid OR. This procedure would require the OR to send staff as support for the procedure. The procedure was schedule to start after 15:30 which is after Vicki's scheduled shift. Knowing that staffing was tight and that an OR team should be present for the procedure, Vicki volunteered to stay and scrub the procedure. She placed her own personal needs on hold and placed the patient first. During the procedure a catastrophic event occurred which solidified the reason for specially trained OR staff. The patient immediately required cardiopulmonary bypass to repair a vessel. Vicki was not acting alone and was supported by her teammate Lindsay Cenerizio, another Cardiac team member working as a Circulator. As a team their participation in this procedure is crucial to procedural success. However, the prior actions and preparations by Vicki, coupled with her compassion and commitment to patient care, effectively resulted in an optimal patient outcome considering the circumstances of the procedure.

I wanted to personally express how extraordinary she is as a cardiac nurse and what a privilege it is to work beside her.