Maryland Heights, Mo. (November 17, 2025) – Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital’s Amanda Boeckstiegel, MSN, RN, has won the 2025 Nurse Innovator Award from the Center for Missouri Nurses.
Awarded Friday, Nov. 7, at the 2025 Missouri Nurses Association Fall Conference in Columbia, Mo., the organization recognized Boeckstiegel for her work leading a pioneering initiative to address the hospital’s most pressing barrier to discharge: the nationwide shortage of private duty nursing (PDN).
The only hospital of its kind in Missouri and one of only a few in the country, Ranken Jordan cares for children with complex medical needs, serving as a bridge from hospital to home. Ensuring a safe and timely transition home is critical to the hospital’s unique care model, Care Beyond the Bedside, which focuses on getting kids out of their hospital rooms and using the power of play for healing.
However, because of a lack of sufficient PDN coverage, an estimated 10–15 Ranken Jordan patients remain hospitalized longer than medically necessary because they cannot go home safely.
Ranken Jordan leadership appointed Boeckstiegel to look at solutions to address the issue.
The result became the hospital’s PDN Discovery Model, which involved upskilling Ranken Jordan nurses so they could serve as PDN nurses when needed to ensure a patient had sufficient care at home.
“Our goal is always to help children return home safely, surrounded by the people who love them, something that is critical for a child’s development,” Boeckstiegel said. “I am honored to be recognized for my work but I also couldn’t have done it without the Ranken Jordan nursing team. The discovery model came to life because our nurses were willing to embrace a new approach to supporting families during the transition home. It was so inspiring to see how our nurses took on this challenge with compassion and courage.”
In collaboration with community partner Team Select Home Care, the PDN initiative began in 2024 with a “one patient at a time” approach.
The goal of the discovery model was to get just one patient home using a combination of PDN and Ranken Jordan nurses. Boeckstiegel and the team met their goal when the first patient, 18-year-old Mikayla, was discharged home in October 2024.
Surpassing expectations, a second patient, 2-year-old Amelia, was also discharged home with support from a combination of agency nurses and Ranken Jordan nurses serving in the PDN role.
“Seeing our young patients thrive at home is the strongest affirmation of our work,” Boeckstiegel continued. “The children and families we serve are extraordinary, and it is a privilege to support them in their journey home. I’m truly honored to be recognized.”
The early success of the discovery model has sparked discussion around its potential to accelerate discharge and improve continuity of care across Missouri. Ranken Jordan is evaluating how lessons from the model may inform broader PDN strategies and partnerships, with the goal of increasing access to safe home-based pediatric care and minimizing hospital days for children ready to return home. The hospital team is also exploring opportunities to share the framework with hospitals and state partners to support timely discharge for medically complex children statewide.
“Amanda is so deserving of this award because she led the PDN initiative with vision and persistence, grounded in a commitment to doing what’s best for our patients and their families,” said Kristin LaRose, Chief Nursing Officer at Ranken Jordan. “Her drive to figure out a solution is exactly the kind of innovation that moves pediatric care forward. We are fortunate to have leaders like Amanda who put children and families first while advancing care not just at Ranken Jordan but in Missouri and beyond.”
To support innovative patient care programs like the PDN Discovery Model, please visit rankenjordanfoundation.org.
