Have you nominated a nurse yet?

There are two types of people - those who are early (planning ahead optional) and those who are last-minute. (Well, three types if you count those people who are spot-on, all the time ... but do those people really exist?)

I'm sure many people are doing their holiday shopping early, like my dad, who will be early to his own funeral. No joke. And then there will be people like my mom, who whip up something spectacular at the last minute. So, what type of person are you? One who will nominate a deserving oncology nurse for CURE's Extraordinary Healer Award early or last-minute?

If you haven't heard about the annual essay contest, each year CURE gives readers (patients, survivors, caregivers, and peers) a unique opportunity to honor an oncology nurse by describing the compassion, expertise and helpfulness that a special oncology nurse has shown to his or her patients. (For research, you can read last year's finalist essays here). At the end of the contest, we will offer three nurse finalists and the individuals who nominated them (plus one guest each) a trip to New Orleans to be honored at a reception on May 3. If you want to get a jump on your nurse nomination, CURE is now accepting submissions to its 2012 essay contest. Why wait until the deadline of March 21st when you know how great your nurse is and can't wait to write about them?

We've had finalists who couldn't wait to submit their essay, and we've honored individuals who nominated their nurse at the stroke of midnight on the last day of the contest.

To learn more about the contest, go to curetoday.com/healeraward. We will also be updating the Extraordinary Healer pages with new features soon, so stay tuned!