Tammy Mull, BSN, RN, CEN, grew up in Mecklenburg County. She is the daughter of two hard working parents who instilled in her the drive to help people. She felt the calling to be a nurse as a young child. The first in her family to go to college, she completed nursing school at Virginia Commonwealth University. Tammy worked at VCU Medical Center for thirteen years in pediatrics and the pediatric emergency room. In 1995 she moved back to South Hill for an Emergency Department (ED) staff nurse role at Community Memorial Hospital. Eventually, VCU Health affiliated with CMH, so she found her way back to her VCU roots. After several promotions, Tammy recently accepted the ED Manager position.

Her favorite part of her job is the people, whether it be a team member or a patient. She is passionate about nursing, believes in treating all people with respect and puts herself in their shoes.

“However technical nursing may be, we cannot forget the caring,” she said. “I am very proud of the ER team we have at VCU Health CMH. They practice with passion and caring.”

This past year has been especially trying for emergency room nurses.

“It was an uncertain time for the community and world,” explained Tammy. “Everyone came together to treat the unknown with the ever-present fear of contracting COVID. We followed CDC and Health Department guidelines, which changed constantly.”

Tammy is board certified in emergency nursing and is an active member of the Emergency Nurses Association. She holds several emergency and trauma certifications and has helped lead multiple new initiatives in the ED.

One project focuses on moving less-sick patients through the ER in a timely manner. By making changes in staffing and working with patient flow data, they’ve been able to track a significant decrease in patients leaving without treatment.

“We do not want any patients to sit for extended lengths of time, waiting to be seen by the ER physician,” Tammy explained. “Our focus is to see everyone and treat them timely and efficiently.”

The second project’s goal is to admit patients in a timely manner.

“We worked with the hospitalists and inpatient units to redefine our process,” she said. “We’ve been able to reduce the time it takes to admit patients. Ultimately, our goal is to do what is best for our patients. We are here 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

The nurse manager role is a new position at VCU Health CMH. One of her main duties will be overseeing the daily operations of the ED. While this may seem like a daunting task for most, Tammy has the experience to do it well. Her biggest adjustment has been moving toward a business professional attire from nursing clinical scrubs to support the nurse manager role.  

“I’ve been wearing scrubs since 1982 and now I have to wear business casual. Each morning is a struggle to pick out my clothes. I see a shopping trip in my near future,” she joked.

Tammy and her husband live in Boydton in a log cabin on 25 acres of land. Her hobbies are reading, cooking, and spoiling grandchildren.

“We have been blessed with two children and four grandchildren,” Tammy said. “Everyone lives in the surrounding area. VCU Health CMH is the hospital for my family.”