She brings high standards to her area of expertise
Stephanie McNees has devoted her career to surgical nursing, with over 30 years of experience. Her most recent role is 12 years as a Preadmission Screening (PAS) nurse. I came to PAS with little knowledge of this unusual type of nursing and she taught me how to be a PAS nurse.
Stephanie brings enthusiasm and energy to her practice. As a self-prescribed perfectionist, she brings high standards to her area of expertise. She asks pertinent questions after scouring charts and interviewing patients. Collaborating with the anesthesia department, surgeon's staff, and co-workers, she makes intelligent decisions about what is and isn't important for surgery. She is persistent when things don't add up. She always questions the unusual and researches the latest evidence based information related to surgeries and brings that information to the Preadmission team. There are many examples of Stephanie finding issues that needed to be addressed before surgery. One example of her expertise is when a patient had a low hemoglobin but had a medical clearance for surgery. There was no known reason for the anemia. Because of her persistence and competency, she knew this was important. She did not just accept the clearance. A colonoscopy was finally ordered and a large colon mass was found. This may have saved the patient’s life. Her surgical experience enables her to educate the patient and staff on surgery details. She has circulated and scrubbed in the operating room and has a deep understanding of the way things are done and why. She understands why certain anesthetics are used and how a patient will be positioned for surgery. She knows the intricate details of the surgery experience and carries this into her pre admission role.
When there is a project to be done she is always on board. She is autonomous and runs with any project she is given. She is meticulous in making job aids to help PAS with any new computer shortcut or new processes. She is always interested and fully present in huddles and anesthesia rounds. She is our preceptor and orients are new staff with exuberance. They know their stuff when they are done with a Stephanie orientation. I am honored to know and work with such an excellent nurse.
Stephanie McNees is a Pre-Admissions nurse at Bronson Battle Creek Hospital. She is the recipient of the 2018 Hazel Latondress Expertise Award, and was recognized during the 2019 Nursing Excellence Celebration.
