Six honored for nursing excellence
WashU Medicine nurses recognized with Excellence in Nursing awards from St. Louis Magazine
St. Louis Magazine/Ann WhiteSix WashU Medicine nurses received a 2026 St. Louis Magazine Excellence in Nursing award. (Clockwise from top left) Abby Bisch, Sanita Burgic, Lisa Gabriele, Jenny Gores, Mary Sullivan and Anne Wagner
More than 885 nurses serve at WashU Medicine locations around the region, providing skilled nursing care and expert treatment coordination to patients requiring everything from routine check ups to the most complex, advanced medical interventions or cutting-edge clinical therapy.
Six highly regarded WashU Medicine nurses were honored in St. Louis Magazine’s 2026 Excellence in Nursing awards — selected for consistently providing selfless, compassionate and innovative care that made a lasting impression on patients and their loved ones. They are:
- Abby Bisch — Advanced Practice. Bisch is a certified registered nurse anesthetist, co-director of the mentorship program at WashU Medicine in the Department of Anesthesiology and an assistant professor at Barnes-Jewish Goldfarb School of Nursing. She was also one of six nurses who received a “Perfect Score” award, given to finalists who earned a flawless evaluation from the selection committee.
- Sanita Burgic — Oncology. Burgic is an adult-gerontology nurse practitioner in the John T. Milliken Department of Medicine and Siteman Cancer Center, based at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine.
- Lisa Gabriele — Medical-Surgical Nursing. Gabriele serves as a staff nurse at West County Plastic Surgeons and the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
- Jenny Gores — Orthopedics. Gores is the patient safety and quality coordinator in Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.
- Mary Sullivan — Cardiovascular. Sullivan, an extracorporeal life support acute care nurse practitioner in the Mary Culver Department of Surgery, also received a “Perfect Score” award from the selection committee.
- Anne Wagner — Neurology/Psychology/Behavioral Health. Wagner, clinical nurse coordinator in the Department of Neurology, was recognized in the neurology/psychology/behavioral health category.
A prestigious selection committee curated the list of honorees. Winners were revealed at an awards reception in June at the Missouri Botanical Garden and were featured in the June/July issue of St. Louis Magazine.
An additional 12 WashU Medicine nurses were selected as finalists: Tonya Becker, Mindy Harmon, Kimberly Hayes, Sharon Heuerman, Kathleen (Katie) Hickey, Jodi Holloway, Heidi Hunsel, Jennifer Massoni, Jennifer Myers, Sarah Smith, Betsy Webb and Jaime Woods.
