For years, each time Dr. Jacob Skiwski arrived at the nursery at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle he made his entrance known with a sing-song inquiry that became his trademark: “Any new ones? Any blue ones?”
Skiwski, best known as “Dr. Ski” in both a show of affection and an inability to grasp the pronunciation of his Polish name, passed away Saturday at age 80 after 47 years as a pediatrician in Columbus. His passion for children (the new ones), especially the most vulnerable children (the blue ones), was instrumental in creating the hospital’s first neo-natal unit.
“Before then, there was just nowhere to take a baby that needed that kind of care anywhere around here,” said fellow pediatrician Dr. Robert Buckley, who had first met Skiwski when both were getting Air Force training in Biloxi.
Buckley began his own pediatric practice after ending his service in the Air Force at Columbus Air Force Base in 1977. As Skiwski was mustering out of the Air Force a year later, Buckley, aware of Skiwski’s interest in neo-natal care, suggested he come to Columbus to start his practice.
During his years in Columbus he was, quite literally, a life-saver, as many of his former patients and parents of patients noted. Hundreds of people left comments on Baptist’s Facebook post, many recalling Skiwski’s life-saving work.
“Dr. Ski saved my now 43-year-old son’s life,” said one commenter.
“He diagnosed both my husband’s and my younger son’s diabetes as their pediatrician and he took excellent care of our oldest son when he was born with a major health issue at birth,” read another comment. “He is the reason, guided by God, that he lived on that day.”
Another wrote “He discovered I had a seizure disorder and recommended mom and dad take me to a children’s hospital where I was eventually diagnosed with epilepsy. I’ll be 14 years seizure free thanks to his diagnosis.”
Always busy
Skiwski was a busy man, so anyone who got to know him did it moving, including those who knew him best – his close-knit family.
“I got to know my dad best, tagging along with him,” said his daughter, Sonya McDow. “He was always carting me off to do hospital rounds or run errands. He was also active. Always ready to do whatever came next. He had this little dance he did when he was ready to do something and was waiting on somebody else to get started.
“We had a pool and he loved putting up the volleyball net for parties, inviting people from all parts of his life – church members, people he knew from Baptist, the staff at his clinic, neighbors,” she added. “He wanted everyone to be there and enjoy themselves.”
Skiwski applied that energy to training nurses, which at times could be intimidating.
“A lot of the student nurses were scared of him,” said Denise Sandifer, who came to Columbus from San Antonio and was already a seasoned nurse. “He could get pretty excited and he would raise his voice, but he always came back later and explained that he wasn’t angry.”
Skiwski’s prowess in training nurses was well-known among his peers and hospital staff.
“He spent hours and hours teaching nurses about neo-natal,” Buckley said. “He had a special way of teaching, which wasn’t for everybody because it could be taken as confrontational. But he loved teaching and the nurses he taught really benefited from that.”
Sandifer said she admired Skiwski’s teaching methods.
“He taught us a lot about the disease process, what to look for, how to treat it and what things he wanted to be called for and what things he didn’t need to be called for,” she said. “Once you proved yourself, he trusted you.”
A family affair
Skiwski opened his own clinic in 1984. From the start, Children’s Health Clinic of Columbus was a family enterprise. His wife, Nancy-Jane, was a registered nurse by training. She managed the clinic for more than 30 years before passing away in 2013 at age 67.
Both Skiwski’s daughter, Sabrina McDow, and her husband, Will, have also worked at the clinic for years, both working their way up the ladder. Sabrina McDow is now CEO and owner of the clinic. Will McDow serves as president.
His son, Jason, also worked as a pediatrician at the clinic before moving to Chattanooga, Tennessee, to open his own practice.
“Dad always intended that the clinic would be a family business,” Sabrina McDow said. “He left a great legacy and that we intend to continue.
Skiwski’s other daughter, Sara-Jane, is a veterinarian with her own animal clinic in San Jose, California.
A pediatrician for all
Skiwski’s patients came from all backgrounds, rich or poor, black or white.
Some doctors choose not to treat patients on Medicaid because of the lower reimbursements the doctors receive for their work.
That never seemed to enter Skiwski’s mind, said Will McDow.
“He believed that no child should ever go untreated no matter their background,” McDow said. “I think that’s a reflection of his faith and the kind of person he was.”
Sandifer said she’ll remember Skiwski for many of his traits, above all his devotion to the sickest babies.
“He was always the one who everybody turned to with the little bitty ones and the sickest ones,” Sandifer said. “Nobody else wanted to fool with them because you’re in demand 24/7. He was the only one to call. He’d be there with them at all hours, sometimes for weeks. I honestly don’t know how he did it.”
Sabrina said the clinic will have a new pediatrician in August. For now, the clinic’s veteran staff of nurse practitioners will tend to patients.
“We intend to carry on his work because that’s his legacy,” Sabrina McDow said.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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