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Meet Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D., and Amelia Dome, M.S.N., R.N.

Senior Vice President of the Cancer and Blood Disorders Center Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D. and his daughter, Amelia Dome, M.S.N, R.N., hematology and oncology nurse

Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D. and his daughter Amelia Dome, M.S.N, R.N. The phrase “it runs in the family” hits close to home for Senior Vice President of the Cancer and Blood Disorders Center Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D., and his daughter Amelia Dome, M.S.N, R.N. They both share a passion for pediatric medicine, they both provide care for oncology patients and they both work right here at Children’s National Hospital. 

Amelia, who joined the organization as a hematology and oncology nurse in 2022, finds comfort and familiarity in working in the same department as her Dad. This unique arrangement has allowed them to celebrate holidays and important milestones together —moments they might otherwise miss due to work.

“We've worked Christmas together and weekends together, and most people spend those times away from their family,” says Amelia. “So even if we're at work together on those days, it's nice to have him there.” 

For example, she recalls when they both worked a shift on Dr. Dome’s birthday last year, and Amelia knew she needed to do something special. “I brought cupcakes to rounds and decorated the board and everything.” 

On most days, both Amelia and Dr. Dome have busy schedules — so their interactions are usually limited to a quick wave and “hello” in the hallway. 

Amelia admits that when she first arrived at the organization, she didn’t tell many people who her Dad was, but after a while, more of her colleagues started to catch on. Even a few patients have figured out their relation.  

Now that it’s become common knowledge, Amelia says she believes communication between her colleagues and the doctors has increased, and her coworkers feel more comfortable reaching out to Dr. Dome in general. In fact, they sometimes don’t even refer to him as “Dr. Dome.” 

Dr. Dome and Amelia Dome“Some of the nurses, they just know me as ‘Amelia's Dad,’” Dr. Dome laughs. 

But the family’s connection to Children’s National doesn’t stop there. Amelia adds that her Mom also works at Children’s National as a nurse practitioner in the neurology department. Amelia says she doesn’t see her Mom as often as she sees her Dad because she works in a different unit, but it’s still comforting to know she's there. 

For the Domes, it’s clear that a passion for helping others runs in the family, and by working in the same unit, Amelia and Dr. Dome have developed a deeper understanding of each other’s work, experiences and accomplishments. 

“In pediatric hematology and oncology, there are a lot of challenging times, and we have a lot of sick patients and very challenging situations that we face...sometimes it's easy to dwell on the sadness and the difficult things that happen, but we also have a big, positive impact on many patients,” says Dr. Dome, who says remembering the lifechanging effect they have on families is what has kept him going throughout his career.

“As a nurse, there are so many different things that we do and so many different roles we play for the patients,” says Amelia, explaining how she has had the privilege of being with some patients through every step of their care journey, from comforting them on the day they were diagnosed, to celebrating with them while they ring the bell and mark the end of their cancer treatment. 

“I honestly can't imagine working in any other field, and I think it worked out that I was able to be in this path with my Dad,” Amelia says. “I'm glad he picked a good one for me to follow.”