Debi Fischer is a nurse at the University of Miami surgical oncology step down unit. Prior to that she worked in orthopedics and neurology for many years. In addition to her nursing experience, she has earned a master’s degree in social work. Becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker was a long-sought-after goal which she finally attained. She is a caregiver for her family and her dogs as well.
The Florida Senate recently passed the No Patient Left Alone Act SB 988, which will allow visitors back into the hospital, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination, so that no patient will wake from surgery or find themselves in hospice, without a family member by their side.
Cancer care and the information around it has moved online.
Besides Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok to link them to the outside world, there are also cancer websites specifically geared for younger patients with cancer.
Your patient had a mastectomy and chemotherapy and is recovering on the post-op surgical oncology unit. She has 1 or 2 JPs (Jackson Pratt’s) which are drained on a prn basis and a surgical bra. The physical part of her recovery is in progress, but what about body image issues?
All too often, I get off the elevator to work on the surgical oncology acute care unit and am witness to an increasingly familiar scene.
Being an oncology nurse is not always an easy job, but here are 3 things that keep me inspired.
YouTube videos can help oncology nurses learn how to do clinical procedures and brush up on their skills.
Here are some things nurses can do to prepare patients to adhere to their treatment regimens once they leave the hospital.
This year, I’ve made 3 New Year’s resolutions that I know can help make me a better nurse.
Listening to a patient carefully, anticipating their needs, and being flexible in your responses to their care schedule are 3 ways oncology nurses can help improve the patient's experience during a hospital stay.
Three things I wish I had been told when I started my career as a nurse would have been to become computer literate, that great footwear is essential, and that communication is key.
A study published in the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery described a surgical procedure called prepectoral breast reconstruction that was used among patients who had mastectomies and radiation therapy following their breast cancer diagnosis.
Elise James, LCSW, and Mayra Garcia, LCSW, describe the Stem Cell Transplant Meet and Greet program at The Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, which provides psychosocial support to pre-transplant patients.
An 11-year study showed that patients with nonmetastatic breast cancer who learned to manage their stress with cognitive behavioral interventions had less depression and a better quality of life.
Elderly women living in nursing homes who were diagnosed with breast cancer may face a greater chance of death compared with their non-resident peers–despite what, for many in other age groups, is routine surgery. Therefore, the decision to perform breast cancer surgery must lie with the patient, family, and her physician.
Patient education comes in many forms. Consider the podcast.
Five tips for helping patients ready themselves for emergencies.
What can we, as oncology nurses, do to decrease young adult patients’ anxiety and improve their outcomes on their paths into the unknown?
An oncology nurse is an observer in what is sometimes a life-and-death drama. But sometimes, we must step into the scene and help the patient get information about what might happen before the curtain falls.
What can we, as oncology nurses, offer to patients who face a recurrence?
There are things oncology nurses can do to reduce their risk of gastric ulcers, and potentially, gastric cancer.
Studies show that patients with cancer benefit from spending time with therapy dogs.
One health system in California is working on a solution to the problem of nurse suicide.
The Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research Act (STAR Act), signed into law on June 5, 2018, addresses a critically under-researched and underfunded area of cancer.
Suicide among nurses is not often talked about, since we are supposed to be everyone’s caregivers.
Working in oncology as a registered nurse, you can learn all kinds of things, from tonight's TV lineup to the importance of letting go of the small stuff.
