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Julie Clements: Advocacy, Empathy, and the Power of Professional Care
May 12, 2025
Julie Clements always knew she was meant to be a nurse. “It’s just something I’ve always known,” she said. “When people talk about love languages, mine is caring—for my family, my coworkers, and my patients.” That clarity of purpose, sparked in childhood by her grandmother’s wartime nursing stories, has carried her through more than 30 years in the profession.
Today, Julie works on the Janeway Psychiatry Unit, a setting that has reshaped how she defines expert care. “It’s not just about medication—it’s about therapeutic interventions, patient contact, family support,” she said. “You’re still assessing, still connecting. It’s just a different kind of work, no less taxing.”
Bringing Light to a Heavy Space
After nearly three decades in medicine at St. Clare’s, Julie transferred to child psychiatry two years ago. What she encountered was a unit carrying the province’s full weight of pediatric mental health needs, but with limited resources and little recognition.
“The Janeway is the only place in the province where there’s any mental health pediatric care,” she said. “So, everything comes to them. And I find that is stressful in a different way. But they’ve done so much with so little.”
Determined to boost morale and create a more welcoming environment, Julie reached out to local artists for help transforming the unit’s drab, institutional setting. Donations came in from across the community—including artwork by Emma Dooley, and Amber McLure Hutton of Newfinn Art. The results have been transformative.
“I was proud of that,” she said. “We wanted it to feel more like a home, less institutional.”
A Voice for Nurses
Julie’s advocacy didn’t stop with aesthetics. When she arrived at the Janeway, the unit had no shop steward. Despite being new to union work, Julie and a colleague stepped up.
“I’m more of a quiet kind of person, but we saw what was happening and knew we had to help,” she said. “The support we’ve gotten from the nurses here has been overwhelming.”
Julie also hopes more people begin to understand what nursing really is—and what it demands. “People say, ‘Oh, I couldn’t do that,’ and they think about tasks like incontinence care. But to me, that’s about dignity. Everyone deserves dignity. And it’s not just about the tasks—it’s about how we provide them.”
She also expressed frustration about a lack of consultation when decisions are made. “At St. Clare’s, they put a lip in the bathroom that we had to push stretchers and wheelchairs over. It sounds small, but it makes our work harder. We’re the ones delivering the care, but we’re rarely asked how best to do it.”
Calm in the Chaos
Julie has built a reputation as a calm, steady presence in high-pressure situations. “I’m pretty calm under pressure. People have called me bossy,” she said, laughing, “but I think it’s more about taking charge when it counts. You just react to the situation in the moment to keep your patients and coworkers safe.”
For her, staying grounded means remembering that every clinical situation is, at its core, human. “There’s a person behind every situation,” she said. “That’s what matters.”
Rooted in Community, Guided by Care
Julie’s decades of service are driven by one central idea: giving patients back some sense of autonomy, even when they feel most vulnerable. “People lose so much when they’re in hospital—their mobility, their independence. I try to give people back some sense of control, some dignity.”
That unwavering focus has made her a pillar of the Janeway unit—and a reminder that expert care isn’t just a phrase. It’s a practice, one she embodies every day.