Julia Skinner, BSN, RN

My mother is admitted on the third floor at St. Dominic. She was told she has cancer by a physician. The doctor told my mother that he was not going to continue letting her "lie up" in the hospital, wasting hospital resources. She was also told that the MRI another physician had ordered was canceled because she was not considered critical enough.

I left the room to find Hospital Administration. As I reached the elevators on the second floor, Julia approached me and immediately went above and beyond to help. She connected me with the Chief of Medical Staff, found a nun at my request, and later came to the third floor to check on my mother. She also located former Hospital CEO Sister Dorothea and personally walked her to my mother's room.

My mother was not Julia's patient, nor was she even admitted to Julia's floor. But Julia saw someone who needed help, and she stepped in. She guided me through the proper channels to address my concerns above the physician's level. In addition to caring for her own patients, she used her time and resources to make sure my mother received the care, support, and advocacy she deserved.

These actions may seem like small things or simply part of the job, but to a patient and family who have just received a cancer diagnosis, those "small things" mean everything. Julia's compassion, advocacy, and willingness to help during one of the most difficult moments of our lives made an immeasurable difference, and we will never forget her kindness.