St. Louis Magazine revealed the winners of the ninth annual Excellence in Nursing Awards at a gala reception on Thursday, April 19, at the Four Seasons Hotel St. Louis.
Presented by Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College and Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis Magazine’s Excellence in Nursing Awards recognize nurses from institutions across the St. Louis region for their exceptional level of knowledge, passion and dedication to their fields.
This year, more than 200 nominations were reviewed by a distinguished selection committee comprised of respected leaders from such organizations as Mayo Clinic–Florida, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, and the University of Missouri. They selected 57 finalists and chose the winners in 19 categories.
In a personal, stirring keynote address before the nearly 500 guests in attendance, KTRS host John Carney spoke of the dedicated, compassionate nurses who were by his side throughout five heart surgeries in less than two years.
See the winners below and look for the full Excellence in Nursing feature in the May 2018 issue of St. Louis Magazine.
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Maggie Wolf
PEDIATRICS: NEONATAL
Maggie Wolf, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
At St. Louis Children’s Hospital, Wolf focuses on the future—in more ways than one. “My job is to have a vision and strategic plan of where we want to go,” she says. At the same time, she draws on more than three decades of experience. In 1993, she became one of the hospital’s first 12 nurse practitioners in the NICU. She worked her way up to manager of neonatal nurse practitioners; then, three years ago, she became director of newborn intensive care services. “To me, teamwork is critical,” she says.
On the job’s rewards: “I’m constantly amazed at how resilient our families are. I see some of the challenges they go through every day, yet they come in with a smile and thank us. They're my inspiration.”
MEDICAL-SURGICAL NURSING
Meg Kurtz, St. Luke’s Hospital
Kurtz is studying for her master of science in nursing and hopes to become a professional nurse educator, though she doesn’t see herself giving up bedside nursing anytime soon. A registered nurse, she attends to both patients’ and colleagues’ needs. For example, she put together an information manual for her floor that’s proved invaluable to new nurses. (It’s worked so well, other floors have followed suit.) She also created a “shout-out” bulletin board, once posting prom photos of doctors and nurses, which got patients up and walking, curious to see their caregivers as earnest teens in formalwear.
On teaching—and mentoring on the job: “I’m also a clinical instructor [at Maryville University], and I always tell my students, ‘Ask questions!’ After my first year as a nurse, I created a book called the A-B-Cs of 8700. So basically, it would be ‘A for appendectomy’ and so on, but there were also doctor-specific tips. If a new nurse was scared to ask a question, she could check the book to see ‘Oh, here, Meg wrote that this doctor likes this; I don’t need to call.’ I also did this for charge nurses on our floor—a place we could all go to and look things up.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Kelley Kostich
ADMINISTRATION
Kelley Kostich, Missouri Baptist Medical Center
Kostich helps bridge the gap between nursing school and the clinical setting. As program manager for professional practice and development and nursing resources, she spends her days teaching new nurses. She also helped launch MoBap’s Dedicated Education Unit, which teaches nurses to navigate the hospital setting. Her passion even inspired one friend to go back to school to become a nurse.
On the job’s rewards: “The days when staff nurses reach out to me and say, ‘Let’s grab coffee and talk about my career, and [you can] tell me about your career.’”
Advice for new nurses: “Don’t be in a hurry to make a choice about your career path. Don’t limit yourself. Nursing is so dynamic.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Rachel Smiley
ONCOLOGY
Rachel Smiley, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Initially, Smiley aspired to be a police officer—but during a Police Explorers program at her high school, it was the paramedics who piqued her interest. After graduation, Smiley worked as a bedside nurse in Barnes-Jewish Hospital’s leukemia and lymphoma unit—and she never left. Today, she’s the unit’s clinical nurse manager, in charge of staffing 32 patient-care beds, boosting nurse morale, and overseeing daily operations.
On the job’s biggest challenge: “Feeling like you want to do more. You have multiple patients and only so much time in the day to complete tasks—when all you really want to do is sit down and interact with your patients and give them the time they deserve.”
ORTHOPEDICS
Christi Abeln, Washington University School of Medicine
In her clinical practice, the pediatric orthopedic nurse practitioner sometimes sees more than 40 patients a day. She cares for infants and adolescents, and she diagnoses such conditions as scoliosis, fractures, and developmental abnormalities. A colleague of Abeln’s says she “always gets the job done,” making herself available around the clock. “Christi’s role for our pediatric orthopedic practice has changed our practice tremendously,” says one co-worker. “Christi’s role has allowed for increased access to providers, patients, and families; further education of fellows/NPs; and monumental improvements for the pediatric orthopedic nurse practitioner practice.”
Her favorite part of working with kids: “Making them feel like their opinions count.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Martin Gitonga
EMERGING LEADER
Martin Gitonga, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Gitonga began his career as a surgical technologist before returning to school for his nursing degree. With nearly a decade of experience in the neuro-surgical unit, he’s now clinical nurse manager for neuro-surgery and head, neck, and throat surgery at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. His colleagues describe him as a role model and leader: “What stands out is his kindness, his ability to think outside the box and come up with innovative solutions to difficult situations in the operating room,” says one co-worker.
On the job’s rewards: “We did a procedure where we put an electrode into a patient’s brain to stop them from having tremors. Seeing the change that creates for the patient makes me want to do it over and over again.”
Advice for new nurses: “I always warn nurses that [the operating room] is going to be a different environment, and I always tell them, No. 1, to never lose the passion for the care you provide.”
NEUROLOGY/PSYCHOLOGY/BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
Alison Morrison, Mercy Kids Autism Center
Morrison spends many of her days at Mercy Kids Autism Center down on the floor, interacting with children as part of the assessment process in diagnosing autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Once a child has a diagnosis, she offers support to the entire family, explaining to parents their child’s strengths and areas in which support will be needed. She then provides parents with the tools to help support kids’ social, physical, and emotional development. She’s also a crucial part of the infant monitoring and intervention program at Mercy, which screens babies as young as 6 months for autism spectrum disorders and follows them as they become toddlers, when autism traits often manifest more obviously.
On the job’s rewards: “When the kids come back and you see the progress they’ve made—whether you get a smile or when a parent says, ‘They said, ‘Mom!’ or ‘They looked at me!’ or ‘I got a hug!’”
What drew her to nursing: “I always knew I wanted to go into the medical field, but I wanted to be able to spend a lot of time at a patient’s bedside or with the families.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Michelle Reitz
ADVANCED PRACTICE
Michelle Reitz, Washington University School of Medicine
As a neurosurgery nurse practitioner, Reitz manages care for patients with such neurological ailments as strokes and aneurysms. She gives detailed examinations for diagnoses, sometimes picking up signs of more serious cases. “She has made clinical diagnoses that the referring physicians, other spine surgeons, and even I have missed,” says a physician. “Regardless of how busy we are or how late we are running in clinic, she gives each and every patient her full attention and skills.”
On the art of diagnosis: “I love the challenge of working out where a patient’s pain is coming from, examining them, and listening—many have anxiety about not being heard.”
INTENSIVE CARE
Christine Mathews, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
“I don’t think people realize how much education it takes—or how hard the schooling is,” says Mathews, who’s studying to become a nurse practitioner. Currently, as a critical care RN and preceptor, she mentors new nurses. When a recent graduate was struggling with the pressures of the ICU, Mathews spent three shifts per week with the new nurse, teaching the virtues of slowing down, avoiding panic, and thinking through tasks. She also serves on Mercy’s Critical Care Nursing Shared Governance, as well as its Practice, Quality and Research Council, which tracks the latest in nursing and helps roll out evidence-based practices.
Advice to new nurses: “Take control of your practice; take it as far as you can. This is not a job where you come in and half-dedicate yourself to it. You either love it or you don’t, and you know early on. If you love it, give it 100 percent.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Joan Smith
RESEARCH
Joan Smith, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Smith found her calling as a youth while serving as a nurse’s aide in a nursing home. After graduation, she worked as a neonatal nurse and then a nurse practitioner at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Five years ago, she earned a Ph.D. Today, as director of clinical quality, safety, and practice excellence, her duties include developing safety initiatives and overseeing nursing research. “I think nursing is the most versatile occupation in healthcare,” she says.
Advice for young nurses: “A new nurse should know they’re part of a team. They should speak up, contribute, and trust their instincts.”
A memorable moment: “The first patient I took care of was a teenage mom whose baby was born very premature. When that baby turned 16, she came back to the hospital to see me and say that she wanted to become a nurse, too.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Michelle Radomski
COMMUNITY CARE/AMBULATORY CARE
Michelle Radomski, Affinia Healthcare
Serve the underserved—that’s Radomski’s maxim. Affinia Healthcare’s director of health center operations lives by the motto, particularly in her work with the homeless. “It’s my passion,” she says, “helping the people who need it the most.”
On the job’s greatest challenge: “Not being able to do enough.”
On handling stress: “I have a son with Asperger syndrome, so I learned as a parent that how I reacted makes a big difference. If he was upset and I got upset, then it all made it worse—so I learned to stay calm and approach things like, ‘We can get this done.’”
PEDIATRICS: NON-NEONATAL
Jennifer Rellergert, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Rellergert is the first to fill the pediatric hospital’s newly created nurse navigator role. She helps families make their way through the maze of healthcare: decoding medical lingo, scheduling appointments, coordinating with social workers, and arranging housing and transportation for out-of-town patients. “Our expectations were blown out of the water,” a colleague says of Rellergert. “Jennifer’s caring personality, drive, dedication, and determination to place the patient and family first have been essential to the success of the nurse navigator pilot.”
On becoming a nurse: “My dad had polio when I was a kid, during the epidemic, but that didn’t stop him. He led a full life, and we had a normal childhood. That drew me to become a nurse, helping others.”
On the job’s rewards: “Today I made 18 appointments for this mom, and she said, ‘Wow, I’ve never had anyone be able to do that for me.’ Instead of spending her morning on the phone, this woman spent it taking care of her child.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Jane Olsen
HOSPICE/HOME HEALTH/ PALLIATIVE CARE/LONG-TERM CARE
Jane Olsen, AccuCare Home Health Care of St. Louis
Though hospice care can be difficult, Olsen focuses on what she can do for her patients. “We get to guide them through a time in life that is most precious,” says Olsen, director of nurses/operations at AccuCare Home Health Care. “We get to be with them in times that their families sometimes aren’t available—we are that extended family for them.”
On the job’s biggest challenges: “Becoming too attached to the clients, the families.”
Advice to new nurses: “Follow your passion and your gut.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Helen Lach
EDUCATOR
Helen Lach, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
An educator at SLU for nearly 30 years, Lach says the university setting is ideal for her because it marries her two passions: research in geriatric nursing and educating other nurses. She mentors international doctoral students from as far as Thailand, Saudi Arabia, and Taiwan. Lach hopes to pass on her love of geriatric nursing and research to her students, who’ve recognized Lach for her commitment.
On the job’s biggest challenge: “I have a hard time saying no, because there are so many things that interest me. I like being involved with school activities, like committees, and working with professional organizations.”
SCHOOL
Dottie Bardon, LaSalle Springs Middle School, Rockwood School District
“School nursing is the best-kept secret in our profession,” says Bardon, who began in a hospital setting and acute care. Today, she relishes the opportunity to serve as a healthcare provider and educator. One of her key roles is to “translate the medical world to the educators,” she says, “and we literally translate the educational world to the medical field.”
On being a school nurse: “Nowhere in nursing can you find the combination of positives that we get in school nursing—the ability to really make an impact on a child and their family over a long period of time.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Amy McLean
WOMEN’S HEALTH
Amy McLean, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Years ago, McLean created a program that’s since been trademarked to provide support to mothers on medical bed rest. Today, as family support manager in Mercy Hospital St. Louis' NICU, McLean is there to support parents who sometimes only have a few minutes or hours with their babies, capturing photographs, taking foot- or handprints, and recording the infant's heartbeat. She also keeps in touch with families long after they’ve left the hospital—including the mom who helped inspire the bed rest support program, whose son is now 23 years old.
Advice to new nurses: “Find a mentor, someone who believes in you even when you don’t believe in yourself.”
On the job’s rewards: “The day when a baby who was born at 20 or 22 weeks—who you’ve prayed for every single day—goes home with their family. You watch the family put them in the car seat and walk them to the door of the NICU, and there’s tears and joy… It’s such a blessing to be a part of this journey with these families. I never take it for granted.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Cindi Silvey
EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT
Cindi Silvey; St. Luke’s Hospital, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
Over nearly two decades, Silvey has worked as both a pediatric and adult emergency department nurse. Two years ago, she also became an adjunct faculty member at SLU School of Nursing. In the trauma ward at St. Luke’s, she’s often with patients and families during the scariest—and sometimes most grief-stricken—hours of their lives. Five years ago, she lost her 21-year-old daughter Meg in a car accident. The experience equipped her to offer support to families, whether in a hospital setting or as a speaker for grief support groups. She also became a family liaison at the hospital where her daughter died; Silvey still brings pizza and snacks to the staff there.
On stress: “Working in the ER, you see a lot of things: A lot of death. A lot of sadness. A lot of good things, though. There are days when you step out of the room and take a deep breath. There are days when you come home, fill the bathtub, light a candle, and just shut the door… The biggest thing is just relying on each other. It’s your co-workers who help make a difference.”
CARDIOVASCULAR
Molly Eggleston, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Eggleston works under complicated care protocols with postsurgical patients in the cardiovascular ICU who frequently need help with such day-to-day tasks as bathing. They’re often in a fragile state, meaning that emergencies can and do happen. The registered nurse often jumps in to help, going beyond her regular responsibilities.
What drew her to nursing: “My grandma was a nurse. I grew up listening to stories of her experience as a nurse. She was an operating room nurse in the 1950s and scrubbed in on some of the first open-heart surgeries, which is why I went into cardiac nursing. She gave me my first stethoscope when I was 5. From that point forward, I knew I wanted to be a nurse and make a difference in as many lives as I could.”
On misconceptions of the job: “I want my patients to feel like more than a name on a chart or a collection of symptoms and to know that they matter to us...A lot of people say, ‘Oh, you’re just a nurse’—but I get to be present at the most vulnerable time in someone’s life. Seeing a patient breathe without a ventilator for the first time or walk after they have been in bed for months or seeing someone’s heartbeat come back after they’ve had a cardiac arrest—it’s the greatest reward I could ever ask for. I’m very present with these people. I get very emotionally attached to my patients. It’s not just a job; it’s a passion, and it's a lifetime commitment.”
Photography by Paul Nordmann
Theresa Gratton
ACUTE CARE/FAMILY PRACTICE/GENERAL MEDICINE
Theresa Gratton, SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital
In becoming a nurse, Gratton followed in the footsteps of her eldest sister, Joan Clark (a finalist in the awards’ Oncology category). “I’ve looked up to her my entire life,” she says. Gratton's abilities as a leader and educator led her to become the infection control practitioner at St. Mary’s, a position in which she monitors everything down to the “air that we breathe”—and often creates helpful catchphrases.
On teaching other nurses: “I can lecture all day long, and it will go in one ear and out the other. But if I tell you something fun or share an easy way to remember it, that you can visualize it, then I know it will stick.”
Biggest challenge: “Educating people about something that is invisible.”
THE FINALISTS
Acute Care/Family Practice/General Medicine
- Theresa Gratton, SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital
- Mary Hoffmann, Washington University School of Medicine
Administration
- Kelley Kostich, Missouri Baptist Medical Center
- Diane Ray, St. Luke’s Hospital
- Beth Rumack, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
- Elaine Thomas-Horton, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Advanced Practice
- Kelsey Mercer, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
- Michelle Reitz, Washington University School of Medicine
Cardiovascular
- Molly Eggleston, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
- Amber Hinterthuer, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
- Jill Igou, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Community Care/Ambulatory Care
- Anna Griffith, Missouri Baptist Medical Center
- Michelle Radomski, Affinia Healthcare
- Lisa Swerczek, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Educator
- Cathy Koetting, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
- Helen Lach, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
- Devita Stallings, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
Emergency Department
- Christopher Boyer, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
- Cindi Silvey; St. Luke’s Hospital, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
- Rosanna Tochtrop, SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital
Emerging Leader
- Lindsay Bilhorn, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
- Martin Gitonga, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
- Josh Fender, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Hospice/Home Health/Palliative Care/Long-Term Care
- Holly Goldblum, Cooperative Home Care and Hospice
- Candy Johnson, Heartland Hospice
- Jane Olsen, AccuCare Home Health Care of St. Louis
Intensive Care
- Charlotte Gibson, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
- Christine Mathews, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
- Mary McCoy, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
- Stefanie Struckhoff, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Medical-Surgical Nursing
- Rhonda Bardo, Missouri Baptist Medical Center
- Angela Kinser, Missouri Baptist Medical Center
- Meg Kurtz, St. Luke’s Hospital
- Julia Williams; Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College
Neurology/Psychology/Behavioral Health
- Catherine Fienup, Washington University School of Medicine
- Janet Burd-Knebel, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
- Alison Morrison, Mercy Kids Autism Center
Oncology
- Joan Clark, SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital
- Rachel Smiley, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Orthopedics
- Christi Abeln, Washington University School of Medicine
- Angela Concepcion, Washington University School of Medicine
- Sarah Conway, St. Anthony’s Medical Center (Mercy)
Pediatrics: Neonatal
- Heather Miller, Mercy Hospital St Louis
- Julie Stumpf, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
- Maggie Wolf, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Pediatrics: Non-Neonatal
- Karen Hamon; Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital
- Becky Indelicato, SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital
- Michelle Papachrisanthou, Saint Louis University School of Nursing
- Jennifer Rellergert, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Research
- Joan Smith, St. Louis Children’s Hospital
- Mary Wilcox, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
School
- Dottie Bardon; LaSalle Springs Middle School, Rockwood School District
- Jane Mark, Lutheran High School North
Women's Health
- Kate Koenen, SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital
- Amy McLean, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
- Emily Petersen, Missouri Baptist Medical Center
- Kymberly Renkoski, St. Louis Women’s Healthcare Group
SPECIAL THANKS TO THE SELECTION COMMITTEE
Ann Cary, Dean, University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Nursing and Health Studies
Rita D’Aoust, Associate dean, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Patricia Davidson, Dean, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Shirley Farrah, Assistant dean, Sinclair School of Nursing, University of Missouri–Columbia
Debra Harrison, Chief nursing officer emeritus, Mayo Clinic in Florida
Phyllis Arn Zimmer, President, Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation
