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March 29, 2024

Myrna Agosto Wins 2022 ESPRIT Award!

November 22, 2022
Mental Health Nurse Practitioner,
Queens/Brooklyn Mobile Crisis Unit, Behavioral Health

“I always try to empower the poor and marginalized.”

“In my role on the Brooklyn and Queens Mobile Crisis teams, I find it rewarding when I’m able to prevent someone from hurting themself or hurting someone else. It’s so satisfying when my colleagues and I can help get our clients into the hospital to ensure they get the care they need,” says Myrna. “I have been a witness to people’s lives being transformed from suffering with mental health and physical illnesses to living a more fulfilling life.”

Myrna’s exceptional diagnostic skills and empathetic, caring nature extend beyond the vulnerable clients she serves. On one home visit, she saw that her patient’s spouse was suffering in her own right, struggling with her husband’s mental-health issues and her sadness at being unable to help him overcome them. With her signature straightforward style, Myrna took the time to educate her about her husband’s illness and symptoms, increasing the wife’s understanding and relieving her sense of guilt and helplessness.

Praised by her colleagues, Myrna returns the compliment, crediting her team’s collaborative and proactive efforts in stressful situations—which, she notes, often require tight coordination with police, hospital staff, social workers and the client’s family in order to generate a positive outcome. She also credits her faith. “I strive to maintain healthy relationships with others, and to love well by bridging racial, cultural, economic and gender barriers,” she adds. “I always try to empower the poor and marginalized.”