NICU nurse Mikaela Bogart, second row center with sculpture, with NICU team, nursing, and hospital leaders.
A grateful mother whose daughter was born 16 weeks early and spent 113 days in the Munson Medical Center NICU wanted to honor a special nurse for her multiple acts of compassion and care that went beyond her job description.
She nominated NICU’s Mikaela Bogart, RN, for The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses.
“The days we had Mikaela as (her daughter’s) nurse were my favorite and we had requested her as a primary nurse,” she wrote. “One day after (her daughter) had a significant bradycardia event, Mikaela noticed her feeding tube was not in the correct placement which might have contributed to the event by the incorrect placement allowing less effective removal of air from her stomach. (My daughter) was not her patient that day and Mikaela took the time to get a new feeding tube and make sure it was placed correctly.”
The mother wrote there was also a day when plans called for her daughter to experience her first bath and when Mikaela learned about the plan, she asked the primary nurse that day if she could assist.
“That was sweet of Mikaela to want to be part of my baby’s first-ever bath and she taught me how to safely and efficiently bathe (my daughter),” she wrote.
Mikaela also was praised for her thoughtfulness in making the mom’s birthday special by crafting a card with her baby’s footprints and remembering the baby’s parents wedding anniversary.
Members of the NICU care team looked on as Women’s and Children’s Services Nursing Director Nikki Matters, RN, Interim NICU Manager Marta Wiesen, RN, and Munson Medical Center Chief Nursing Officer Tami Putney, RN, provided information on the DAISY award and presented Mikaela with a special certificate, pin, hand-carved “Healer’s Touch” sculpture, and a tray of fresh cinnamon rolls that are traditionally part of the award. Munson Medical Center President and CEO Matt Wille, NICU neonatologist Lisa Allred, MD, and Shared Governance leaders Jenna Stoddard, RN, and Rebecca Avers, RN, also attended the ceremony.
The award is a national recognition established in 1999 by a Seattle, Wash. family who wanted to honor nurses who go above and beyond in providing care – the kind of care they witnessed at a Seattle facility as their son, Patrick, fought but eventually died of an auto immune disease.
“I feel thankful that I have the opportunity to be available and interact with patients,” Mikaela said. “I am blessed to be a blessing.”