Celebrating Excellence: Moffitt Honors 2026 APP of the Year and Physician/APP Team of the Year

Behind every exceptional patient experience at Moffitt Cancer Center is a team of people working together — sharing expertise, solving challenges and making sure patients feel supported throughout their cancer journey. 

Two of Moffitt’s annual awards recognize advanced practice professionals (APP) and physician/APP teams who exemplify that commitment to patients and one another. 

This year, physician assistant Sam Murphy was named the 2026 Advanced Practice Professional of the Year, while Monica Avila, MD, and physician assistant Lela Gregory received the 2026 Dr. Bryan McIver Physician/APP Team Award. 

Leading With Patients in Mind 

Murphy, who works in Ambulatory Hematology Oncology, was selected from three finalists for the APP of the Year honor. Physician assistant Kaitlyn Coucoules from the Radiation Oncology Department, and nurse practitioner Kathryn Herricks, who works in the Malignant Hematology Department, were also recognized as finalists. 

The selection committee, which included representatives from clinical leadership, administration, faculty and previous award recipients, reviewed nominations submitted by patients, families, colleagues, peers and physicians. 

Across those nominations, one theme emerged repeatedly about Murphy: Her impact extends far beyond any single role. 

Over the past five years, she has played an integral role in the growth of APP teams across Moffitt’s expanding network. Nominators credited Murphy with helping recruit and hire clinic and infusion center-based APPs at Moffitt Wesley Chapel, Moffitt International Plaza, Moffitt SouthShore, Moffitt at Speros,  Moffitt First Connect at Ocala and the future Lakeland campus. 

Over the past three years, the Ambulatory Hematology Oncology Department has grown from three faculty members and three APPs to 25 faculty members and nearly 70 APPs supporting four ambulatory sites, six infusion centers and seven non-Moffitt inpatient hospitals. 

“Receiving this recognition is incredibly meaningful because everything we accomplish is truly a team effort,” Murphy said. “As Moffitt has grown, I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside so many talented people who share the same goal: making sure our patients have access to exceptional care wherever they enter our system.” 

Even as her leadership responsibilities have expanded, Murphy has remained connected to patient care. She continues to see patients in the outpatient setting, providing evidence-based, patient-centered care. 

One patient who has been under Murphy’s care for five years described experiencing firsthand her “extraordinary dedication, clinical expertise and deep compassion.” 

Another nomination captured what distinguishes her approach: She treats the whole person, not just the medical symptoms. 

For Murphy, maintaining that connection with patients helps keep the purpose behind the work in focus. 

I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside so many talented people who share the same goal: making sure our patients have access to exceptional care wherever they enter our system.

Sam Murphy

“Our patients are at the center of every decision we make,” Murphy said. “Whether I’m caring for someone in clinic, helping grow an APP team or working through an operational challenge, I try to think about how that decision will ultimately affect the patient and their family. That’s what keeps the work meaningful.” 

Colleagues also highlighted Murphy’s ability to bring people together, find solutions and advance clinical care while keeping patient care at the center of every decision. 

“She is the perfect example of an APP who balances patient care, departmental growth and institutional strategy,” one nominator wrote. 

A Partnership Built Around the Patient 

That same spirit of collaboration is at the heart of the Dr. Bryan McIver Physician/APP Team Award, presented this year to Monica Avila, MD, and physician assistant Lela Gregory. 

Sexton and Johnson honor Monica Avila, MD, and physician assistant Lela Gregory, who received the 2026 Dr. Bryan McIver Physician/APP Team Award.

The award honors McIver’s legacy of excellence, compassion and teamwork. He believed the strongest healthcare teams were built not simply through individual expertise, but through trust, mentorship, patience and hard work — qualities that become even more important when challenges arise. 

The award recognizes physician assistants, nurse practitioners, certified registered nurse anesthetists and anesthesiologist assistants who collaborate with physicians in oncology to make a meaningful impact on patient care, education, access and research. 

For Avila and Gregory, the recognition reflects a partnership built around a shared understanding of what their patients need. 

“The foundation of our partnership is trust,” Avila said. “We communicate openly, we respect each other’s expertise and, most importantly, we share the same commitment to our patients. When everyone is working toward that same goal, patients can feel the difference.” 

Gregory says the partnership also allows them to see each patient from different perspectives while providing consistent care. 

“One of the things I value most about working with Dr. Avila is knowing that we can rely on each other,” Gregory said. “Cancer care is complex, and no one does this work alone. Having that collaboration allows us to think through what each patient needs medically while also understanding what matters to them as a person.” 

Their colleagues see the impact of that partnership firsthand. 

“As a registered nurse in the department where this team practices, I can say this is the best team I have ever worked with,” one colleague wrote. “Their compassion and patient-centered care is unmatched.” 

There is so much that can feel uncertain during cancer treatment. If we can make patients feel supported, informed and confident that the entire team is working together for them, then we’re doing what we set out to do.

Monica Avila, MD

Patients and caregivers echoed that sentiment, highlighting the team's thoughtful, evidence-based decision-making and commitment to incorporating each patient's goals and values into treatment. 

One patient described a level of connection that can only develop when clinicians truly listen: “When going to my clinic visits, I feel like this physician and APP can read my mind. They always know what is important to me.” 

For Avila and Gregory, knowing that patients recognize that connection makes the award particularly meaningful. 

“We want our patients to know that they are heard and that they are part of the team,” Avila said. “There is so much that can feel uncertain during cancer treatment. If we can make patients feel supported, informed and confident that the entire team is working together for them, then we’re doing what we set out to do.”