Gene Knepper has always felt a connection with Tucson Medical Center. He was born here. His daughter was born here. His mom works here. More than that though, he loves how close-knit TMC is – with each other, with patients and with the community.

This feeling of connection led him to a career at TMC – starting as a transporter about five years ago. From there he worked his way up to become a patient care technician and then a registered nurse, just in time for COVID-19.

“I started in the Emergency Department and only got about three weeks of regular nursing before going into pandemic mode,” he said. “It’s been nonstop.”

Starting a nursing career right at the start of a global pandemic had its challenges, but Knepper found his passion and his specialty while working in the ED. He discovered that he was highly skilled at placing IVs and central lines and that he loved these particular procedures.

“I loved it,” he said. “It is my favorite skill to use. I wanted to utilize these skills more so I started looking at working in the Cath Lab or the OR and discovered the VAT team.”

Now he works on the small but mighty Vascular Access Team as a vascular-access specialist nurse.

“I love what I do,” he said. “With my job, I not only help patients, but other staff. We play a huge role in preventing infections so patients can receive a high level of care while reducing the risk involved. And we provide a level of IV access that nursing staff can lean on when they are struggling. It’s so important because so much of what we do relies on IV access. You need it to distribute antibiotics, pain medication, fluids.”

Another perk for Knepper is he gets to work in all areas of the hospital, helping a variety of patients and working alongside staff from all units.

Knepper’s department is constantly on the go. In 2022, the Vascular Access Team worked with about 5,500 patients. He enjoys what he does and where he does it. In fact, he said he never even considered working at another hospital.

“I’ve seen things at other hospitals,” he said. “I’ve always felt TMC is more personal. It’s more connected, and I’ve had tons of patients tell me they’ve been to all of the other hospitals and will always come back to TMC. That means something to me. Also, I see my manager and my director every day, and I know I can reach out to them and they are here. I like that. I just like how close-knit the staff is with each other and among the community.”