We are so grateful for our nursing staff, especially during this current COVID-19 pandemic. Day in and day out, they continue to embody what it means to be a health care hero.
Today, we highlight three Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital nurses: Jon, Meagan, Jennifer. They recently won awards for their hard work while going above and beyond their job descriptions. Learn how each one of them has made many contributions to their teams and enhanced the lives of their patients.
Jonathan Hegvic, MSN, RN, CEN
Magnet Excellence in Nursing Leadership
St. Mary’s Hospital, Intensive Care Unit
Jon (pictured above right) has been responsible for managing a unit that has transitioned to a new critical care group. Throughout this process, he has encouraged collaboration in order to provide outstanding bedside care to our patients.
Jon frequently checks in on his days off and always escalates patient safety concerns. He also works diligently to be sure physicians have the resources they need to do their jobs. This includes securing new machines and having equipment readily available via procedure carts.
During times of high stress and change on his unit, Jon has been a responsive manager by addressing problems head on and has provided comfort by advocating for his staff. He is present to team members for all shifts. He does this by coming in early every day and leaving late so that staff on both the day shift and night shift can see him and ask questions.
Jon helps with admissions, so his team sees he is actively involved and always knows what is going on in the unit. He checks in with every staff member throughout the week. This has helped his team grow tremendously, and they are grateful for his continuing efforts.
Jon is constantly acknowledging his team for their hard work and creativity. He sends weekly emails that include shout outs for staff who have gone above and beyond. He gets these tips from other staff members and things he sees when rounding on the unit. Everyone knows that Jon makes it a priority to celebrate his team on the hard work and compassion they provide.
Congratulations Jon and thank you for all you do for Bon Secours!
Meagan Wright, MSN, RN, CCRN
Magnet Clinical Nurse of the Year Award
St. Mary’s Hospital, Intensive Care Unit
Meagan (pictured above left) has been an exemplary leader throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. She worked quickly to develop educational tools including tip sheets for new processes. She also worked tirelessly, engaging with staff and following up on questions related to COVID-19.
Some examples include Meagan’s recent work with videos. She collaborated with the neurology team to create videos to quickly train their staff to care for intensive care neuro patients. She also created a proning video for her intensive care unit teammates. Proning is the process of placing a patient face down on their bed so they are lying on their stomach. This position is used to help treat patients with severe respiratory illness, like COVID-19. For this video, Meagan collaborated with the wound care team and the critical care nurse specialist to develop a process to protect patient skin during the proning process. Meagan engaged with providers and advocated for the evidence-based treatment of these patients.
Megan has accomplished all this while maintaining other aspects of her role. She also participates in several interprofessional groups, including the Critical Care Collaborative Practice Group. As part of this committee, Meagan advocates for the most up-to-date evidence-based practices. She has been a valuable contributor to the Ventilator-Associated Subgroup of this committee. Additionally, she collaborates closely with the new critical care physicians to ensure quality patient care is delivered.
Meagan is a natural leader and for all these reasons she has earned this award. Congratulations, Meagan!
Jennifer Black, MSN, RN, OCN
Certified Nurse of the Year Award
St. Mary’s Hospital, 6E Oncology
Jennifer (pictured above middle) delivers patient-centered care to our oncology patients who are admitted for chemotherapy/biotherapy treatment. She works closely with the oncologist and nurse practitioner to make each patient’s experience as seamless as possible. This process starts with obtaining consent, labs and reviewing orders prior to admission.
Jennifer devotes extra time to first-time patients. She reviews their orders and treatment plan, then answers their many questions. Jennifer goes above and beyond and provides a personal touch by giving patients a gift bag of items to provide comfort during their stay.
Jennifer has been instrumental in encouraging her young team members to get chemotherapy/biotherapy certified through online classes with the Oncology Nursing Certification Corporation. This includes a basic oncology course and a chemotherapy/biotherapy certification course. There is a team goal to have eight staff members become oncology nurse certified this year. As the leader of this goal, Jennifer has set up a learning center with information, references and sample review questions.
Most importantly, Jennifer is admired by her colleagues for her professionalism, knowledge, understanding of the disease and compassion for all those she cares for and works with.
Congratulations, Jennifer! Thank you for all you do for your team and patients.
Read more stories about a few of our amazing Bon Secours nurses.
