Cleopatra “Cleo” Ferrao is a family nurse practitioner at Mattapan Community Health Center, which provides preventive and primary care to underinsured and uninsured residents of Boston’s Hyde Park and Mattapan neighborhoods. Since joining the health center in 1997, Cleo has developed a reputation for delivering unceasingly compassionate and first-rate care for some of the city’s most underserved residents. “Dr. Cleo,” as she is affectionately known, advocates for every patient she sees. Her patients are often immigrants who have little or no experience with the health care system. They are frightened, bewildered, and often their cultural and religious practices prevent them from seeking traditional medical care. From the moment they meet Cleo, however, their lives change.

Cleo believes a patient’s story can reveal as much, if not more, than any medical test. Family history, current living situation, or religious beliefs can often help Cleo determine the reason a patient seeks her help. She educates her patients about preventive health care, removing the veil of mystery about their bodies, medication and illness. She ensures that her patients truly understand what she is saying, patiently repeating herself, calling them at home to make sure they follow her directions, and never mistaking silence for comprehension.

Born in East Africa to Indian parents, Cleo is the eldest of six. When she was 16, political unrest in East Africa forced her and her younger sister to move to Bombay, India, without their parents. Eventually, the rest of her family joined her. As the oldest child, she was expected to work and start supporting her family, which she did for many years. One day, Cleo met a friend who told her she was going to nursing school. Captivated by this idea, Cleo immediately enrolled in the same school.

Several years later, Cleo met and married her husband. After her first child was born, she volunteered at an orphanage run by Mother Theresa. In 1985, she and her family moved to Boston. She worked first at Carney Hospital as a nursing assistant, then later she became a registered nurse. She joined the Visiting Nurse Association of Boston and remained there for 14 years. “At the VNA,” Cleo says, “I found my niche, a place where I could really take care of people.”

When asked about her approach to patient care, Cleo states, “I try to make sure that my patients know that I need them as much as they need me.” She tells them that seeing her regularly and keeping their appointments are the only ways that she can continue to provide the best care possible. She explains that if they lose touch with her, she can no longer do her job.

Cleo is available to her patients day and night, often making and receiving calls at her home. In the waiting room at Mattapan Community Health Center, patients chat about their experiences, testifying that Cleo helped them find jobs, housing and food. As one patient wrote in support of Cleo’s nomination, “As appointment time draws near, patients are filled with the anticipation of visiting a dear and compassionate friend.”

Not long ago, Cleo found herself on the opposite side of the examining table: she was diagnosed with a rare cancer. Instead of slowing her down, the disease seemed to accelerate her drive to help people. “The connection I have with my patients runs very deep. I truly realized this when I was diagnosed. My patients were there for me as much as I took care of them. Now I was able to get through surgeries and radiation with their support.”

Cleo is happiest when she is caring for others. For patients who frequent Mattapan Community Health Center, having a committed and empathic caregiver is not just their good fortune, it is their right. They learn from Cleo how to value their health and feel a part of community.