Congratulations to our 2022 Mary Cook Nurse of the Year!

Congratulations to Kasiah Robinson, Clinical Nurse Manager at St. Mary’s Wound Care & Hyperbaric Medicine in Enid, OK, for being named our 2022 Mary Cook Nurse of the Year. This award recognizes a dedicated, skilled and compassionate clinical nurse leader whose commitment to the patient and improvement in wound care is at the forefront of everything they do.

Kasiah has been providing exceptional patient experiences with Healogics for 16 years and has been a valuable team member and mentor to her colleagues. Her dedication to patient care, clinical excellence, and leadership have made a significant impact on the lives of her patients and the broader nursing community.

Please take a moment to read Kasiah’s responses to our questions below to learn more about her journey through the nursing world. Her insights and experiences are truly inspiring, and we are honored to spotlight her for this achievement.

Why did you decide to go into nursing?

I was going to college to study engineering and got this overwhelming feeling that I was on the wrong path. My mom told me I wasn’t allowed to quit college and suggested I try nursing. Everything fell into place and I found something that I love.

What do you love most about working in wound care?

I love the challenge of trying to figure out what’s keeping a wound from healing; being able keep the patient from needing an amputation is the best feeling. They become our family. Giving them hope again is really gratifying. Also, evacuating a big hematoma… if you know, you know.

What do you love most about working at Healogics?

I love that Healogics has so many resources available to us. If we have any questions, from best practices to reimbursement, we can look on the Hub, send an email, or make a phone call to find out the answer. Healogics has a patient-first approach which is why we all do this job.

Who inspires you?

My mom. She’s the best person I’ve ever known. She taught me perseverance and generosity.

What’s the most challenging aspect of nursing?

Getting the patient to trust you and trust the process. Compliance is key when we’re trying to heal a wound and if the patient isn’t bought in to the process, it makes things harder.

Tell us about a time when nursing was very rewarding.

We had a patient who had radiation injury to her esophagus, trachea, and vocal cords. She had to have a trach, peg tube, and was told she needed to have her vocal cords removed. She was unable to speak and had to use a writing board to communicate with us. After 40 hyperbaric treatments, she had her trach and peg tube removed and was able to speak clearly. She said that first cup of coffee was like heaven. To have that kind of impact on someone’s life is really profound.

Tell us something about providing wound care that you want other nurses to know.

The patient has a better chance of healing with fewer complications if we can see them in the earlier stages of the wound. Don’t wait to send them to us.

Mary Cook, RN, was a Healogics team member and wound care pioneer who passed away in 2010, and Healogics is proud to recognize the extraordinary efforts of our clinical nurse leaders in her honor.