Veterans hold a special place in Nicole Wigern’s heart.
As Mitchell County Regional Health Center’s 2025 DAISY Award winner, she reflected on this due to a recent situation where she helped a young family whose father had military commitments.
“I just knew I wanted to do whatever I could for them at that moment,” she said. “Their family was an example of so many we work with who sacrifice so much.”
Wigern’s nomination centered around managing that time and establishing a close connection with the family. She offered to stay with a young child who was struggling with a medical issue and ride in the ambulance to the larger hospital to help the family, who were extremely grateful for the care she provided.
“This demonstrates the care, compassion and empathy that Nicole shows every day towards her patients,” the anonymous nominator said. “She went above and beyond the call of duty for this family to make an incredibly stressful, unexpected situation, a little less stressful. Mitchell County Regional Health Center is very fortunate to have Nicole’s nursing care and expertise.”
The DAISY Award is an international recognition program that honors extraordinary nurses for their compassionate and skillful care. It was established by the Barnes family in 1999 in memory of their son, J. Patrick Barnes, who had a rare blood disorder and received exceptional care from his nurses. MCRHC recognizes a nurse for the DAISY award annually during Nurses week.
Joining Wigern as a nominee for the recognition were Jessica Adams, Donna Boerjan, Linda Kolbet, Abby Helton, Kristy Hovde, Tammy Mauer, Kristy Mayer, Kelly Patterson, Jessica Perry, and Jezzy Rooney.
