Marcus T Koger
March 2025
Marcus T
Koger
,
BSN, RN
Cardio Thoracic ICU
BJC Healthcare - Barnes-Jewish Hospital
St Louis
,
MO
United States
Having Marcus for several shifts, our admiration continued to grow as we saw Marcus's unending ability to demonstrate compassion and provide excellent care. We have so much to thank Marcus for!
I spent 7 days in the ICU after my surgery. All of the nurses provided outstanding care, but Luke, Marcus, and Noah stood out as going above and beyond.
My wife tells this story about Luke: It was almost 11 PM on the day of surgery before I was able to come to J's room in the ICU. I was pretty frantic by then. Luke gave me a great explanation about the bleeding that happened after J's surgery and that Jim was being kept under anesthesia overnight so that he wouldn't move around and restart the bleeding. Luke was thorough with his explanation and used terms that I could understand. Luke's demeanor was so calm as he explained things, and that really helped me to calm down, too. I stayed at the hospital that first night, and every time an alarm would start beeping in J's room, Luke would be there immediately to address the situation. The next couple nights, I did not stay overnight at the hospital; it was comforting to know that Luke was J's night nurse.
Marcus was my nurse on the day after surgery. His ability to explain what was going on when I woke up the first time from surgery and his continuing assurance that I was in good hands were a very calming experience for my wife and me. Having Marcus for several shifts, our admiration continued to grow as we saw Marcus's unending ability to demonstrate compassion and provide excellent care. We have so much to thank Marcus for! We also saw how Marcus remained calm and kind while quizzing a student nurse about whether the particular line he was changing should be flushed. He was so patient and kind while he explained why this particular line should not be flushed.
Noah: I went into A-FIB on Tuesday morning when Noah was my nurse. He explained that I was going to get a heparin drip to thin my blood due to the A-FIB. He said that my heart was not pumping correctly, which meant I could get clots, and that the heparin should prevent this. Noah did an outstanding job of keeping my wife and me informed about what he was checking with the doctors on, and about what things may take place that day. Example: Noah told us at 9:35 AM that he had sent a note to the doctor asking if my urine catheter could come out. At 12:10 PM, Noah removed the catheter. It was SO comforting to know ahead of time that the catheter may be removed. By this time in my ICU stay, I was pretty tired of all the tubes!
My wife tells this story about Luke: It was almost 11 PM on the day of surgery before I was able to come to J's room in the ICU. I was pretty frantic by then. Luke gave me a great explanation about the bleeding that happened after J's surgery and that Jim was being kept under anesthesia overnight so that he wouldn't move around and restart the bleeding. Luke was thorough with his explanation and used terms that I could understand. Luke's demeanor was so calm as he explained things, and that really helped me to calm down, too. I stayed at the hospital that first night, and every time an alarm would start beeping in J's room, Luke would be there immediately to address the situation. The next couple nights, I did not stay overnight at the hospital; it was comforting to know that Luke was J's night nurse.
Marcus was my nurse on the day after surgery. His ability to explain what was going on when I woke up the first time from surgery and his continuing assurance that I was in good hands were a very calming experience for my wife and me. Having Marcus for several shifts, our admiration continued to grow as we saw Marcus's unending ability to demonstrate compassion and provide excellent care. We have so much to thank Marcus for! We also saw how Marcus remained calm and kind while quizzing a student nurse about whether the particular line he was changing should be flushed. He was so patient and kind while he explained why this particular line should not be flushed.
Noah: I went into A-FIB on Tuesday morning when Noah was my nurse. He explained that I was going to get a heparin drip to thin my blood due to the A-FIB. He said that my heart was not pumping correctly, which meant I could get clots, and that the heparin should prevent this. Noah did an outstanding job of keeping my wife and me informed about what he was checking with the doctors on, and about what things may take place that day. Example: Noah told us at 9:35 AM that he had sent a note to the doctor asking if my urine catheter could come out. At 12:10 PM, Noah removed the catheter. It was SO comforting to know ahead of time that the catheter may be removed. By this time in my ICU stay, I was pretty tired of all the tubes!