Linda M. Porazzi

Linda M. (Holmes) Porazzi’s journey through life began on Feb 2, 1948 and ended June 22, 2010. Age 62, she was born in Gardner , Massachusetts and lived her early life in Leominster , Massachusetts . She was the oldest of seven children of Floyd and Margaret Holmes. Linda’s goal was to become a nurse from an early age. She was a member the Future Nurse Club at Oakmont Regional High School . In order to reach her goal she joined the US Navy in Feb 1968 shortly after her twentieth birthday and served as a Naval Hospital Corpsmen. She was stationed at Great Lakes Naval Training Center , Pensacola and Orlando FL , Naval stations and finally Chelsea Naval Hospital , Boston , MA . Leaving the Navy in Nov 1970 and returned home to attend Fitchburg State Collage under the GI bill. While stationed in Pensacola NAS, FL she worked at the Navy Medical Dispensary and Navy Primate lab caring for Miss Baker, a squirrel monkey that became the first living being to successfully return to earth after traveling in space. She also met her future husband of 38 years, Alberto R. Porazzi. Linda often quipped Miss Baker and her husband were hard to tell apart because they sometimes behaved the same. Alberto and Linda married on Dec 31, 1972 in New York City . Linda obtained an Associates of Applied Science degree in nursing from Staten Island College ; Staten Island , N.Y in 1975. Linda returned to her home state to attend Fitchburg State College; Fitchburg , MA earning a BSN in Nursing/Education in 1980. Linda came to San Antonio , TX in 1981 following her husband’s Army military career. In San Antonio, Linda started working at Audie Murphy Veteran Hospital, the South Texas Veterans Healthcare System (STVHS) and continued her professional nursing career there until Dec 2009 when forced to retire due to failing health from Lymphoma Cancer. During her career at STVHS she continued to advance her education and completed her MSN (Adult Health / Peri-Operative Nursing) at University of Incarnate Word in SA, Texas in 1990. Her nursing career has spanned over 37 years and has been characterized by significant, sustained and progressive contributions that improve patient care and provider productivity.

Linda was an active member of the STVHCS Operative Room Committee, the Surgical Site Infection Control Committee (CQIC), and a prior two year co-editor of STVHCS Primary Views. Nationally she was the STVHCS Consultant and STVHCS Liaison Representative to the D.V.A., The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program and Management Decisions & Research Center , and a NSQIP Task Force CPT Code Member. In this capacity, she integrated discrepancies in surgical patient care data. She was an active member in both national and regional NSQIP Committees, and a nationally recognized problem solver, and a highly valued team consultant on NSQIP teleconferences. Where she achieved a reputation of “the person to ask”. Locally she was an active member of the S.A. Operating Room Nurses Association, and UIW Nursing Honor Society.

The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) and Texas Board of Nurse Examiners recognized Linda as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Medical-Surgical Nursing. She completed post-graduate course for prescriptive authority. In her Surgical Clinical Nurse Reviewer Coordinator and Manager role, she was responsible for both scientific and administrative conduct of the NSQIP components. This incorporated clinical screening, data compilation, and documentation of all STVHCS surgical patient care database and informatics. The NSQIP is the National V.A. Surgical Database that identifies opportunities to improve patient care.

Through her time as a NSQIP monitor, Linda continually maintained a 99-100% exam accuracy validation requirement. Her application of knowledge, ability to effectively interact with interdisciplinary teams and long devotional hours, raised Audie Murphy Veteran Hospital NSQIP 61% validation rate to 99% during her tenure. This achieved National Benchmark Status for the STVHS. She received national recognition for excellence and dedication as well as eight achievement certificates from the NSQIP. Her creative ability and application of clinical and computer knowledge enabled her to identify a DHCP Surgical package error that terminated surgical patient assessments being transmitted from VA centers to the National VA Database Computer. Without this discovery, the implementation of a safeguard patch which kept security of transmitted data possible would not have occurred.

Linda led an interdisciplinary team which included Pharmacy, Anesthesia, Quality Improvement and Information Management. This team coordinated a process program correlating timing and administration of antibiotics to surgical infection rates. This process program ultimately led to a decrease in surgical site infection and publication in Seminars on Perioperative Nursing. An additional process program was designed and resulted in four major hospital benefits: documentation of pre- and post-operative co-morbidity data; physicians instrument for documenting Patient and Family Education Teaching; O.R. Nurse instrument for facilitating preoperative assessment; and Medical Administrative Services coding for Patient Treatment Files becoming more efficient and reliable. From this Process Program, Linda developed a Care Givers Guide for physicians that incorporated a comprehensive education instruction handbook for the phases of NSQIP. This guide continues to provide information for faster decision making for the documentation of surgical patient health assessments and care.

Linda contributed significant surgical patient care database elements to 38 NSQIP publications. Major noted publications include: Annals of Surgery; Archives of Surgery; British Journal of Urology ; Health Services Research; International Society of Quality in Health Care and Oxford University Press ; Journal of American College of Surgeons ; Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery ; Journal of Health Care Management Review ; Obstetrics & Gynecology ; and Surgery . She developed education media on NSQIP, including Care Givers Guides, Storyboards and media presentations for JCAHO, QI week, and Regional NSQIP. Other media presentations were presented to the Surgical Case Review, Infection Control, O.R. Surgery Committee, and the national NSQIP conferences.

Linda Porazzi leaves behind a daughter Kristina Porazzi-Sorrells, a son Alberto M. Porazzi, Son-in-Law Samuel Sorrells and three grandchildren Breanna, Mathew and Anthony. Visitation will be from 1:00 to 3: 00 pm on Thursday June 24 at Sunset Funeral Home with the service to follow at 3:00 pm in the Sunset Funeral Home Chapel. The Porazzi Family would like to thank the Oncology Hematology staff, physicians, and nurses at Wilford Hall Medical Center for their skill, dedication and compassion. They enabled Linda to be with her family longer. Mr. Porazzi would like to thank all the staff member of Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) operating room for their thoughts, prayers, and support that enabled him to care for Linda over this past year.

Arrangements under the direction of Sunset Memorial Park & Funeral Home, San Antonio, TX.