Doctor about nurse practitioner: ‘She is the glue that holds the team together’

By TJ Banes, IU Health Senior Journalist

During Nurse Practitioner Week we spotlight Nicole Greives

Ask her co-workers about Nicole Greives and they say without hesitation she is an integral part of their team.

Greives started her career at IU Health in 2004 working as a student nurse in medial ICU. Since 2012, she has worked in a hybrid role in both pulmonary critical care and transplant at IU Health University Hospital. She became a nurse practitioner in 2010.

On a recent day when she was completing rounds with a Dr. Gabriel Bosslet, and a group of residents, med students, and fellows, Grieves offered these parting words to her patient: “Just know, you’re not alone.”

Those words are the heart of Greives’ love for nursing.

“Nicole runs the pulmonary service at University Hospital. She is the glue that holds it together. She works terrifically with young training physicians and is patient and kind with them,” Dr. Bosslet, Director of Mentoring and Faculty Development, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care.

“She is an amazing hard worker and always has the best interest of the patient in mind. She understands that hospitalizations don’t end when the patient goes home. I frequently find her following up with patients who have been discharged days ago. She just plain cares about those she takes care of, and that is very clear,” said Dr. Bosslet, who has worked with Greives since 2007 when she was a bedside nurse and he was a fellow.

Greives grew up Lafayette and graduated from Lafayette Central Catholic High School. She worked as a Candy Striper in high school and then as a student nurse throughout college.

Her inspiration to pursue nursing came at an early age.

“I was a preemie. My parents kept in touch with my NICU nurse named, ‘Bunny.’ Every year after my birthday celebration, bunny would take me to NICU to see the babies,” said Greives. Then in seventh grade she had surgery for Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), a congenital heart condition where a normal fetal vessel fails to close after birth. Her surgeon was Dr. Mark Turrentine at Riley Hospital. “I remember as a 13-year-old a nurse coming in and washing my greasy teen hair and making me feel human. When I decided to pursue nursing, I thought about Bunny and that nurse at Riley who washed my hair.”

In her role at University Hospital Greives works closely with residents, med students, and fellows training them in hospital collaboration. “I’ve worked here so long that I try hard to create good relationships between fellows, nurses, and nurse practitioners. I want to be approachable.”

She said she chose to become a nurse practitioner because she loves a challenge and enjoys learning. She also received her doctorate in 2016 and a post master’s degree in 2024.

As a nurse practitioner, she no longer works long shifts at the bedside, but she does create strong ties with patients. “I had a patient who was deemed not a lung transplant candidate for financial reasons. When she was going home and transitioning to palliative care, she gave me a big heart sign with her hands and said, ‘I love you.’ That’s something I will never forget,” said Greives.

Outside of work, Greives is married and enjoys attending concerts and reading.