Photo By Jason Bortz | Lt. Mike Cole, division officer, family medicine, Naval Hospital Pensacola, was...... read more read more
PENSACOLA, Fla. - Lt. Mike Cole, division officer, Family Medicine, Naval Hospital Pensacola, was recognized Wednesday as the Nurse of the Year for the Pensacola area. The award coincides with National Nurses Week, which runs from May 6 to 12.
The first time award for the area was organized by Mary Alexander, a registered nurse and senior director of business development for Select Specialty Hospital, Pensacola. Alexander received hundreds of submissions from healthcare facilities in the Pensacola area, which includes Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties.
“He is an impressive Nurse Corps officer,” said Cmdr. Marnie Buchanan, associate director of Medical Services. “He demonstrates the diversity that is essential for a Nurse Corps officer. He is always willing to step up and accomplish what is needed.”
Cole, whose Navy career started in 2004, represents the type of individuals that form the Navy Nurse Corps, which on May 13 will celebrate 105 years of nursing in the Navy. Created in 1908, the original Nurse Corps consisted of 20 women nurses who were assigned to the Naval Medical School Hospital in Washington, D.C. Today, Navy nurses, both men and women, are deployed all over the world and are not only assigned to Military Treatment Facilities like NHP, but also participate in humanitarian and combat missions.
Cole, who grew up in the Philippines as the son of missionaries, didn’t decide to pursue a career in nursing until his senior year of high school. Cole had a natural desire for a career in the medical field because his father was a pediatric physician, but it was actually his science teacher in high school that convinced him to pursue nursing.
“I had a lot of respect for [my teacher], and he explained to me the benefits of being a nurse,” said Cole.
After graduating high school, Cole attended Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio, to earn a degree in nursing. With no family history of military service, joining a branch of service had never really crossed Cole’s mind until he attended a health fair on the campus.
It was at that health fair that Cole met a Navy recruiter that showed him that he could not only be a nurse in the Navy, but he could travel the world. Inspired by the prospect of seeing the world, Cole joined the Navy and after graduation reported to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Va.
Cole’s first assignment as a Navy nurse was as a maternal child nurse, not his first choice, but one he is now happy he got.
“I wanted to be a pediatric nurse, but [Labor and Delivery] was where I was needed,” said Cole. “Now, Labor and Delivery is my passion. Being a nurse is very rewarding and it’s a real sense of accomplishment, but it’s especially rewarding in Labor and Delivery because I was part of the [delivery] experience.”
Since his first duty station in Portsmouth, Cole has worked in Labor and Delivery in both Okinawa and Naval Hospital Pensacola before his current role in Family Medicine. He has also taken part in three deployments. He deployed to Kuwait as part of the Expeditionary Medical Facility and to Guantanamo Bay where he worked as part of the Joint Medical Group. He also deployed to Haiti to provide humanitarian aid after an earthquake in 2010.
“Haiti has been the highlight of my Navy career,” said Cole. “I was part of the pediatric unit and I got to take care of children that were affected by the earthquake.”
For someone who grew up in the Philippines and never had thoughts of serving his nation until college, Cole has quickly made an impression in the Navy and the surrounding community. A regular volunteer at his church, Cole’s hard work and contributions have now been recognized by his peers in both the Navy and the local community.
“I am honored to have just been nominated, especially since I’m not a native of [Pensacola],” said Cole. “It’s great to be recognized for the hard work [Navy nurses] do in the area.”
| Date Taken: | 05.09.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 05.09.2013 11:03 |
| Story ID: | 106628 |
| Location: | PENSACOLA, FL, US |
| Web Views: | 473 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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