UKIAH, Calif. – With the addition of nurse practitioner Lily Robison, Hillside Health Center has once again expanded access to family medicine in Ukiah.

Robison, originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, left the war-torn nation at age 16 and arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah. She spoke no English but hoped to follow her passion for medicine, nonetheless.

As a little girl, she set her sights on becoming a doctor, but when her life was upended with a move to the United States, she began adjusting her plans. After high school, she worked as a pharmacy technician while earning a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Utah.

During that time, the pharmacist she worked for recommended Robison pursue nursing school, which would allow her to fulfill her interest in caring directly for patients.

She achieved her bachelor’s degree in nursing in 2012, graduating as a member of the nursing honor society Sigma Theta Tau.

During nursing school, she enjoyed the patient interaction, but she yearned for a deeper, longer-term relationship with patients, and she could see the physical toll bedside nursing took, so she pursued a master’s degree in nursing and became a family medicine nurse practitioner.

Being a family nurse practitioner allows Robison to meet her personal and professional goals.

On the personal side, as the mother of two small children, Robison enjoys the regular schedule that comes with being a nurse practitioner because it allows her to spend time at home.

On the professional side, being a nurse practitioner allows her to work in a field she has always wanted to work in and to build the relationships she finds rewarding.

“It’s so satisfying seeing patients,” she said. “Regardless of our backgrounds, we all have problems, family challenges. To be in medicine, you must have empathy and you have to really listen to your patients.”

Robison decided to move across the country to work at MCHC Health Centers because she liked the people there, and the practice style felt like a good fit. She also liked the area. Her husband is from a small town in Wyoming and they wanted to raise their children in a similar environment.

Robison describes herself as family-oriented, conservative, and hard-working. “I’m quiet until you get to know me; then I talk a mile a minute,” she admitted.

Hillside Health Center is part of MCHC Health Centers – a local, nonprofit, federally qualified health center offering medical, dental and behavioral health care to people in Lake and Mendocino counties.