Four Wisconsin nurses, including two University of Wisconsin Oshkosh alumni, received 2016 Nightingale Awards in April from the College of Nursing (CON) in honor of their excellence in clinical nursing.
“It is critical for nursing students to learn professional roles and behaviors as part of their nursing education. The Nightingale Awards ceremony provides students with real-life examples, role models and scholarships to help them in their journey towards becoming a professional,” said Bonnie Schmidt, CON assistant dean and director of evaluation and projects.
UW Oshkosh graduates Dawn (Marrier) Auclair ’97, of Oshkosh, and Heather (Wilcox) Epley ’02, were honored at a celebration held at UWO’s Alumni Welcome and Conference Center. Auclair is a hospital coordinator and organ transplant coordinator with Mercy Medical Center-Ministry Healthcare of Oshkosh, while Epley is a family birth care nurse with ThedaCare in Neenah.
Also, Nicole Dekan, an emergency room nurse ministry at Our Lady of Victory Hospital in Stanley, and Estie Muranyi, an operating room nurse at St. Agnes Hospital, also received the Nightingale honor.
Nominees for the honor included three additional UW Oshkosh alumni: Nancy Gimenez ’96, ThedaCare Medical Center-Berlin; Maria Del Carmen Graf ’15 MSN, Aurora Medical Center; and Larissa (Smage) Torkelson ’11, RN, St. Elizabeth Hospital.