Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt delivers high-quality care, creates a welcoming environment for parents and children, and serves as a resource for the surrounding community. None of these things would be possible without an array of people across Monroe Carell to care for sick children. There are nearly 4,300 employees across the hospital, Vanderbilt Department of Pediatrics and every area that makes that care possible.
Among the many teams are advance practice providers, which include physician assistants/associates, nurse practitioners, certified registered nurse anesthetists, clinical nurse specialists and certified nurse midwives. More than 280 APPs work across Monroe Carell and the Vanderbilt Department of Pediatrics. APPs are certified and licensed to assess, diagnose, treat and manage illnesses, prescribe medications, perform clinical procedures, and conduct clinical research in management of the whole individual.
From Sept. 23-27, VUMC is observing Advanced Practice Providers week with various activities, including giveaways, two Blessing of the Hands services (Tuesday, Sept. 24 and Wednesday, Sept. 24) and special visits from Monroe Carell facility dogs, Squid and Velour. The VUMC Office of Advance Practice is hosting a reception on Thursday, Sept. 26 in the Theater at Monroe Carell from 4 to 6 p.m.
As part of the celebration, Monroe Carell shared the stories of two of the many APPs who are dedicated to caring for children.
Sarah Hart
Sarah Hart has been dubbed a “Hart of Gold” because of the compassion she brings to her patients with both behavioral health and acute medical needs at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
Hart was recognized in the spring of 2024 with VUMC’s annual Jerita Payne Advance Practice Nurse of the Year award, with her nominators writing, “Sarah pours herself into her patients and her colleagues. Compassion and humanism underscore everything she does…she radiates kindness and caring for her family, patients and colleagues.”
Hart begins each day focused on the hospital’s mission. “I love working with children and their families in the hospital setting – it is meaningful work to me,” Hart said. “It is a privilege to be able to do the work that we do – to serve people in a vulnerable place and be able to help. It is an even greater privilege to work alongside colleagues that are equally as passionate about helping children and their families live their best possible lives.”
In addition to her inpatient work, Hart is an advocate for athletes with disabilities, the safe storage of firearms, and identifying and helping families with food insecurity.
Hart is a native Nashvillian and says Vanderbilt is in her blood. “My grandfather was a die-hard Vanderbilt football fan and, even in the pouring rain, he was the last man in the stadium saying, ‘I know they can do it!’”
Hart received her Master of Science in Parent, Child and Adolescent Nursing from Vanderbilt University School of Nursing in 1998. She spent the next 16 years of her career in pediatric hematology-oncology, primary care and pediatric intensive care. In 2014, she returned to VUSN to obtain her post-master’s degree as an Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. She then returned to Monroe Carell, and now serves as an APRN with the Division of Pediatric Hospital Medicine.
The biggest draw to working as an advanced practice provider at Monroe Carell is to be in an academic hospital, she said.
“In an academic medical center, we’re constantly challenged. To be immersed with learners, with teachers, with students — we’re all constantly learning from one another and getting smarter, getting better. I think being in an academic medical center encourages me to stay curious, to always grow, to never stop learning,” Hart said.
Being an advanced practice nurse, she says, allows her to think broadly about the health care patients receive. “I feel like (advanced practice nurse practitioners) are able to bridge the gap between physicians and bedside nursing. In some ways, I feel like my role as a nurse practitioner is as much to take care of the patient as it is to advocate for and support our nursing staff,” she said.
Outside of work, Hart enjoys time with her husband, Daniel, her two children, Mason and Robert, and their three dogs, Max, Nana, and Reuben.
Sue Chmiel
Sue Chmiel has been a physician assistant at Monroe Carell since 2016, finding her home in the neonatal intensive care unit where she combines her love of being a pediatric nutritionist and an advanced practice provider.
“The NICU is one of the hardest places to work and also one of the best places to work,” Chmiel said. “I’ve always said the wins are big and the losses are hard. You are taking care of someone’s baby and taking care of them when parents can’t be there…You treat them like your own. You sometimes take care of them for weeks…and you get to know the families, and we’re their hope.”
Inspired by her mom who was a dietitian, first in India then in Mississippi, Chmiel went into pediatric nutrition, but soon realized she wanted to expand her abilities and scope of work. Becoming a physician assistant gave her that ability.
She worked as a pediatric nutritionist from 2002 to 2009 in Alabama, and then decided to get go back to school in Charleston, South Carolina, to become a physician assistant. She completed a PA residency at University of Kentucky. During her time in Kentucky, she also did multiple medical mission trips to Guatemala and Ecuador where she was able to offer her skills while also giving back.
“Being a PA allows me to do more, have autonomy, but yet, I have someone to go to if I need something, which is perfect for me,” she said. “One of the great things about Vanderbilt, is I have the most amazing co-workers, and you always have somebody who you can go to to ask questions.”
Chmiel splits her time in the NICU at Monroe Carell and Level II Vanderbilt Regional Affiliated NICUs including Maury Regional Medical Center, and if needed, Wiliamson Medical Center.
Having a flexible schedule as a physician assistant also affords Chmiel more time with her 20-month-old son, Alex, her husband, Adam, and their dog, Willow.
Being a mom also makes her appreciate the work she does in the NICU that much more.
“I think working in the NICU is the best job there is. I can’t imagine doing anything else,” Chmiel said.
