APP of the Quarter

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: June 2023

Michelle joined the Department of Anesthesiology in 2015 as a nurse practitioner (NP) with critical care medicine. Her NP career initially began in 4400 Surgical/Burn/Trauma ICU but with the growth of the division, her career also expanded to 7800 SICU, eICU, Memorial Hospital Belleville, 8200 COVID ECMO, and a small amount of time at Christian Hospital Northeast to provide additional support during the COVID pandemic. Additionally, in 2019 she accepted an APP Leadership position at Memorial Hospital, Belleville.

Michelle says she is “grateful for the opportunity to take care of patients and families during some of the darkest days of their lives”, citing this as “a constant reminder that both humbles and inspires me to be grateful for everything I have each day.”

Within our department, she finds great joy in the expansion of our critical care APP group, citing these new opportunities to learn and work alongside such a diverse group of highly intelligent, culturally diverse, and engaged colleagues as a personal motivator to continue to improve her practice each day.

Michelle was named the Q2 2023 APP of the Quarter! Her nominator says, "Michelle is a great teammate, leader, patient advocate, and friend. She truly cares about our ICU as one that not only delivers quality care to our patients, but that's great to work in as well."

Outside of work, Michelle is engaged with her spouse, young family (children ages 8, 5, 2), and dog.  She has newly adopted yoga as a daily practice both to challenge her body physically and to release some of the emotional stress brought on by caring for critically ill patients.

Fun fact, Michelle grew up in a small town in southern Illinois - so small that the entire town’s population is less than half that of the BJH patient bed capacity.

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: December 2024

Holly Brooks, ACNP, has been nominated as the Q4 2024 APP of the Quarter for her outstanding dedication, compassion, and leadership. Holly’s unwavering commitment to her team, patients, and their families is truly inspiring. Holly's nominator says that she goes above and beyond in every aspect of her work, creating a supportive and collaborative environment while consistently demonstrating excellence in patient care. Her positive energy, advocacy, and ability to connect with others make her an invaluable asset to the team and a shining example of what it means to lead with both heart and skill. Congratulations, Holly!

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: March 2025

Originally from Sullivan, MO, Paige earned her undergraduate degree in biology from Columbia College. She began her healthcare journey in 2017 as a patient care technician to gain experience for physician assistant school. During her clinical training as a PA, she rotated through the SICU and later joined the WashU Medicine Critical Care APP team after graduating from SLU in December 2022.

Paige Cardoza, PA-C, has been nominated as the March 2025 APP of the Quarter!

Paige’s nominator highlighted her incredible dedication, sharing how she went above and beyond to plan a wedding for a patient’s daughter—ensuring the patient could be present for the special moment, complete with photos.

Beyond her clinical excellence, Paige is deeply involved in supporting PA students, mentoring colleagues, and serving on the Social & Well-Being Committee. Her colleagues consistently praise her willingness to help, even on the busiest shifts.

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: October 2020

Kathleen has been a Physician Assistant in the Surgical ICU at Barnes/Washington University since 2017. Originally from Sacramento, California, Kathleen lived in the Bay Area of California for six years to complete her undergraduate degree at Santa Clara University and then worked as an EMT. She then moved to St. Louis in 2014 to start her Physician Assistant program at Saint Louis University. She quickly fell in love with St. Louis and it's Midwest feel (without the up-North winters) and began working at Washington University soon after gaining her Physician Assistant Master of Medical Science degree.

The Surgical ICU has been the perfect job for Kathleen as she loves to stay busy and work in a fast paced environment. Her co-workers are amazingly supportive and have truly become close friends. She appreciates the challenges that her patients' present and has enjoyed occasionally working at Christian Hospital Northeast whenever needed, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kathleen, her boyfriend (Jeremy) and Jack Russell (Maggie) live in the Central West End and love eating, drinking and playing through the city. She especially loves to spend her free time biking (road and mountain biking), golfing (poorly), going to concerts and having get-togethers with friends and family. She's never met a party she didn't want to host! Fun fact: even though she grew up in California, she only cheers for Michigan sports since her parents are both Michiganders. Go Blue!!

Kathleen was named the Q3 2020 APP of the Quarter because she is an excellent team player and a creative problem-solver who is dedicated to delivering high-quality patient care.

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: October 2021

Nicole joined the department in 2013 after graduating from Goldfarb School of Nursing as an Acute Care Nurse practitioner. Nicole is currently the lead APP at Christian Hospital Northeast ICU. Outside of work, she enjoys home improvement projects, gardening, hiking, and spending time with her son, Blake, and daughter, Taylor.

Nicole was named the Q3 2021 APP of the Quarter for her dedication, resourcefulness, and support of her fellow colleagues. Congratulations, Nicole!

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: September 2022

Joshua Fender (He/Him) has been an APP with the department since 2021. He has a BS in Fire Paramedicine from Lindenwood University. He obtained his MSN with an emphasis on quality improvement informatics, education, and leadership from Sant Louis University. Josh recently graduated with his AGACNP post-master's certificate from Goldfarb School of Nursing. He has been a recipient of St. Louis Magazine's Excellence in Nursing and March of Dimes Nurse of the Year. In his free time, you can find him mushroom hunting, cooking, and spending time with his partner Eric and their two golden doodles Riley and Zion.

Josh was named the Q3 2022 APP of the Quarter!

His nominator says, "Josh is an incredible team player. He is always helping with schedule changes and picking up extra moonlighting. He is always positive and easy to work with. He will lend a helping hand without being asked and he provides compassionate care to his patients."

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: December 2022

Maureen Flanagan (She/Her) is a nurse practitioner from Dallas, Texas. She earned her bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis in 2014 and went on to earn her RN and MSN from Yale University in 2017. She has been practicing in the Surgical ICUs here at BJH since her graduation in 2017. In her free time, she loves exploring new places around the world, cooking new pasta recipes, and spending time with her dog, Luka.

Maureen was named the Q4 2022 APP of the Quarter! Her nominator says, "Maureen works hard in difficult situations and goes above & beyond to provide great care for her patients. She's smart and is a true team player."

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: March 2026
Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: April 2026

Catherine Gould, PA-C, has been a valued member of the Surgical Critical Care team in the Department of Anesthesiology since 2017. A St. Louis native, she earned her bachelor’s degree in biomedical science from Maryville University before completing her Master of Medical Science at Saint Louis University in 2016.

Since joining the APP group, she has served as both a preceptor and mentor to new physician assistants and nurse practitioners, where she enjoys fostering confidence, independence, and learning.

Outside of work, Catherine loves traveling, exploring new restaurants, reading, baking, attending concerts, spending time in nature, particularly cycling and hiking, and enjoying time with her five nephews. 

Catherine was named APP of the Quarter in March 2026. Here is what her nominators had to say:

"Recently, Catherine Gould was very patient in helping me understand the complexity of my patient. Every question I asked was answered with patience & making sure I understood what we were doing with the patient. She even mentioned that no question was a dumb question & that is very validating when you fully don't understand the whole clinical picture of your patient."

"Catherine Gould is an exceptional APP who consistently exemplifies reliability, professionalism, and kindness. She is a steady and trusted presence on the team, always level-headed, supportive, and willing to help wherever needed. Catherine serves as an outstanding mentor to our group, both formally and informally, and she sets the standard for the kind of clinician and colleague we all strive to be. She is an incredible preceptor and a true wealth of knowledge, always generous with her time and guidance. We are incredibly fortunate to have her on our team."

Congratulations, Catherine!

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: April 2021

Teresa was born and raised in St. Louis, MO and joined the department in 2016 after graduating from the ACNP program at Saint Louis University. Prior to becoming a nurse practitioner, she was a bedside nurse in the emergency department and cardiothoracic ICU at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Outside of work, Teresa enjoys spending time with her husband Brett and their boxer, Shirley. She also enjoys travelling, cooking, SCUBA diving, reading, and spending time outdoors running, hiking, kayaking, camping, and gardening

"I feel blessed to have been chosen to be part of the SICU APP group as my first job out of school. I enjoy the fast paced environment and have an amazing group of co-workers that have helped me learn and grow in my profession!"

Teresa was named the Q1 2021 APP of the Quarter! She is always attentive to the staff and patient needs and is a great resource to have on our care team! Congratulations, Teresa!

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: January 2021

Becki Loveless, PA-C graduated from Quinnipiac University in 2000. She has worked in a variety of fields including orthopedics, emergency medicine, CT surgery, and most recently made the transition to critical care in July 2019. She currently works in the CTICU at BJH and in the ED at Missouri Baptist.

Becki has been active in both state and national PA organizations, currently serving as the HOD representative for MoAPA at the national AAPA conference. In addition, she has traveled throughout the country as a lecturer for the AAPA on responsible prescribing of opioids as well as the opioid epidemic. Becki was honored with the designation of Distinguished Fellow of the AAPA for outstanding dedication and achievement in the PA profession in 2015.  In her free time, she spends time being a sports mom for her two boys and traveling the world when there isn't a pandemic going on.

Becki was named the Q4 2020 APP of the Quarter! She has been in the COVID-19 unit working nights for many months without a break. She has been a wonderful resource to her colleagues regarding caring for ECMO patients, and she consistently recognizes and helps out her team when others are overwhelmed with their workloads.