U of M Nurse Nets Top Honor for Mentoring Skills

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (October 23, 2007) -- A University of Minnesota nurse is being recognized throughout the Midwest as an outstanding nursing leader who shows excellence in mentoring.

Juliet Mock, a research nurse in the Cardiovascular Clinical Trials Center (CTC) and a graduate student earning a master’s degree as an adult health clinical nurse specialist, won the Nursing Spectrum Heartland Region Nursing Excellence Award in Mentoring. Mock was the only Minnesota nurse to earn the award.

“In over 40 years of practice, I have never seen a more skilled mentor,” said MaryEllen Berman, the nurse manager in the University of Minnesota’s CTC Department of Medicine. Berman, on behalf of the entire CTC team, nominated Mock for the award.

“She epitomizes the word mentor. She teaches colleagues, both nurses and auxiliary staff, on a daily basis, seemingly effortlessly, as a natural part of the daily routine.”

The Nursing Spectrum Award is given by NurseWeek magazine each year. The magazine honors nurses in 13 separate regions of the country. The Heartland region, where Mock was chosen, features 11 states and six award winners.

After a nurse is nominated, an advisory board from NurseWeek selects a group of finalists, whose names and places of practice have been deleted to minimize any bias – in each category. These finalists are then forwarded to a group of nursing leaders who then choose the regional winner.

As a result of the award, Mock will be featured in an upcoming issue of NurseWeek. Mock, a three-year employee of the University of Minnesota, is excited to be honored, but is humbled by receiving the award.

“It’s a great team that I work with, and they make coming to work easy and enjoyable,” she said. “Research provides patients who have cardiovascular disease the opportunity to access leading-edge care and therapies in the hope that effective treatments will be available in the future. I like the challenge of working in the cardiovascular field, and it is an exciting time to be working in research.”

The University of Minnesota Cardiovascular Clinical Trials Center in the Lillehei Heart Institute performs clinical trials to study new treatments and technologies for patients with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart attacks, heart failure, and heart transplants.

The Academic Health Center is home to the University of Minnesota’s six health professional schools and colleges as well as several health-related centers and institutes. Founded in 1851, the University is one of the oldest and largest land grant institutions in the country. The AHC prepares the new health professionals who improve the health of communities, discover and deliver new treatments and cures, and strengthen the health economy.

Contact: Nick Hanson, Academic Health Center, (612) 624-2449, hans2853@umn.edu
Emily Jensen, Academic Health Center, (612) 625-4119, jense888@umn.edu