Here are the finalists in the 2016 Health Care Heroes NP/PA category.
Honors an nurse practitioner or physician assistant whose performance is considered exemplary by patients, peers and other health care providers.
Virginia Czimber
TITLE: Family nurse practitioner
ORGANIZATION: Novant Health Family & Internal Medicine South Brunswick
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID: “According to the community health assessment, diabetes ranks eighth in leading causes of death in Brunswick County.
Ginny has served as a key leader for Novant Health, as well as the broader community, in designing care and programs to help target this epidemic in the county.
Novant Health offers community-based services through implementing glucose screenings, A1C screenings and diabetes educational seminars designed to increase awareness of diabetes, provide prevention and management techniques and support patients in their diagnosis.
Ginny is nearly always present at these events and seminars to help screen and coach patients who have or may be at risk for diabetes. She is truly devoted to improving the health of the community she serves and is able to use her knowledge and experience in treating endocrine disorders to do just that. Patients continually express how thankful they are to have Ginny in our community and how grateful they are for the care she shows them in every interaction. Ginny is also a devoted member of her profession, always looking for ways to improve upon her skills.”
-Amy Myers, Novant Health
Mary Beth Koehler
TITLE: Child medical examiner provider
ORGANIZATION: The Carousel Center Inc.
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID: “Ms. Koehler works full-time as a primary care pediatric nurse practitioner at ShoreFun Pediatrics in Shallotte, and on her days off, joined The Carousel Center Inc. team three years ago to utilize her advanced nursing degree and love of children to assist Carousel’s mission.
There she serves as a pediatric forensic/medical expert for children reported to have experienced physical/sexual abuse and/or neglect.
The foundation of most child abuse investigations start at The Carousel Center through a comprehensive process called a Child Medical Evaluation (CME) …
Ms. Koehler dedicates her days off to ensure Carousel Center has the CME Providers required to provide this vital service. She even provided assistance to do extra CMEs on two separate occasions in these years when the center had a vacant full-time CME Provider position. If that wasn’t enough, Ms. Koehler took the newest full-time CME Provider under her wing… to mentor her in forensic/medical examination, evaluation and documentation strategies.”
-Amy Feath, The Carousel Center executive director
Patti Lee
TITLE: Advanced nurse practitioner
ORGANIZATION: Southeastern Nephrology Associates
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID: “A native of Whiteville, Patti has worked for over 20 years caring for patients suffering from kidney failure.
Her experiences supporting chronically ill patients led her to return to school to obtain her nurse practitioner degree, and she joined our nephrology practice to assist the rehabilitation of our dialysis patients.
Her role in our group calls for her to drive throughout southeastern North Carolina, visiting our patients while they are on dialysis.
She travels to dialysis units in New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, Columbus, Duplin, Bladen and Onslow counties and is always ready to fit in another drive for a colleague that is unable to make it to a particular unit.
She has also assisted us in the care of inpatients at NHRMC and has been invaluable during hurricanes and ice storms, coordinating care for our patients who must have dialysis despite the weather.
She has inspired some of our patients to continue their fight against kidney disease when they have felt like giving up.”
-Robert Moore, Southeastern Nephrology Associates physician
