ADMINISTRATION
With a combination of clinical and administrative experience, Chief Executive Officer Annette Small leads the day-to-day and strategic business aspects of the Midwest Aortic & Vascular Institute so that the surgeons can focus on what they do best, take excellent care of patients. She leads a top-notch team of clinical and operational staff to ensure a patient experience that is second to none.
Annette Small, MBA, BSN, RN
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Annette Small has the perfect blend of clinical and business experience, as well as respect and trust of the surgeon owners, to guide MAVI to new heights. Within her first year of joining Kansas City Vascular, P.C., she orchestrated the merger of the group with Vascular Surgery Associates, P.C. to create MAVI, positioning the group as the largest independent vascular surgery practice in the region.
Prior to joining Kansas City Vascular, P.C. in 2015, Annette was Chief Operating Officer for Adams Dairy Bank in Blue Springs, Mo. Annette supported the bank’s strategic efforts to grow core deposits, as well as its culture of above and beyond customer service and community-based banking. Annette also served the Blue Springs community as Chief Executive Officer of St. Mary’s Medical Center. In 2009, she began rebuilding the organizational culture and initiated multiple tactics to improve service, quality, profitability and most importantly, patient and medical staff engagement.
In addition to her work, Small is active in various civic and professional organizations. Through the years, her involvement with the Blue Springs Chamber of Commerce has included membership, serving on the board of directors and being twice nominated “Business Person of the Year.” Small was a member and on the board of directors for the Blue Springs Economic Development Corporation. She was also a member of the Blue Springs Rotary Club and the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Nikki Kramer, RN
Clinical Manager & Clinical Research Manager
Helping to foster advances in vascular disease, therapies and technologies is Nikki Kramer’s role as MAVI’s clinical research manager. Working under the guidance of MAVI’s clinical trial investigators, Nikki oversees recruitment, screening and enrollment of subjects, monitors trial progress, and serves as the point of contact for The Food and Drug Administration and all sponsoring organizations.
Before joining MAVI in January 2016, Nikki worked in an acute care hospital in departments that included medical-surgical, telemetry, interventional radiology and clinical outcomes. With more than 15 years of experience, Nikki’s impressive skills as a hands-on nurse and in designing quality outcomes performance improvement led her to MAVI. In September 2016 she assumed the role of clinical research coordinator, helping patients gain access to new research treatments before they are widely available.
She holds Licensed Practical Nursing and Associate of Science degrees in nursing from Penn Valley Community College
When she’s not working, Nikki enjoys spending time with her children.
Terri Self
Revenue Cycle Manager
As the patient revenue cycle manager at MAVI, Terri is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of billing operations and ensuring the accuracy and timeliness of all payment issues. Terri brings impressive skills to MAVI, having spent more than 21 years as a patient representative for St. Mary’s Medical Center in Blue Springs, Mo. Her specialty is helping patients navigate the sometimes confusing insurance process. Terri is a graduate of Central Missouri State University.
Rita Spurgeon, RVT, RPhS
Technical Director, Ultrasound and VeinCare
Rita joined MAVI in 2020. She holds two vascular-specific credentials as a registered vascular technologist (RVT) and Registered Phlebology Sonographer (RPhS) and has been employed in the field of ultrasound since 2004. Rita embodies a passion not only for non-invasive vascular ultrasound testing, but for the entire patient care experience.
Her role involves assisting physicians in the diagnosis and treatment of a wide variety of disorders affecting the vascular system and ensuring high quality clinical results. Prior to onboarding with MAVI, Rita spent many years working as a senior vascular sonographer and gained a plethora of knowledge working directly with vascular surgeons at a large teaching hospital/institution and was even recognized by the department of surgery with a prestigious service award for her outstanding performance.
Rita holds an applied sciences degree in Vascular Sonography from Southeast Technical College in South Dakota and is currently working toward a degree in Biomedical Sciences in Diagnostic Imaging from the University of Wisconsin. She one day aspires to complete grad school for her masters degree in either Biomedical Diagnostics or Healthcare Administration.
In her free time, Rita enjoys being a mom to her young daughter Claire, traveling, skiing, boating, trying new foods/restaurants, and going to concerts.