Tufts MC True Blue Recipient: Mike Kelleher
Contract Manager, Medical Engineering
Nomination submitted by Biomedical Engineering Director Ed Sacco, BMET:
“I’ve been working at Tufts MC for over 20 years, and the last ten have been with Mike at my side. The changes that I’ve seen our program go through in those years have been astounding. Through Mike’s personable and easygoing nature, people from all positions in the hospital know who he is and feel confident when he’s called to their department. Mike’s position in the medical engineering department allows him to interact with every other department in the hospital. The feedback I get from all of those departments is always the same: "Thank God Mike is here."
“In one instance, Mike received a call from a researcher in the Human Nutrition Research Center (HNRC) building about an anesthesia machine needed for a lab experiment. Knowing that an anesthesia machine would be nearly impossible to find anywhere else, Mike personally wheeled one through the snow from Tufts MC to the HNRC building. After that, he stayed with the researcher to make sure that everything was running properly. He was a crucial part of what would eventually become an award-winning experiment.
“He doesn’t think of his job as highly impactful, but I can tell you that it is. People call me up begging me to send Mike over to help. Our customers aren’t buying a service, they’re buying him and the professional, exceptional work that he does.
“In all the years we’ve been working together, I’ve never caught him in a bad mood. There isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t share a laugh or two. Mike inspires me on a daily basis. The last thing he’s looking for is a pat on the back, but he certainly deserves one.”
