Eileen has been the Breast Cancer Center Coordinator since 2009. Her primary responsibilities are care and coordination of the breast center, but her dedication in caring for patients goes far beyond the breast center. The following examples are just a few of many and why we believe Eileen is an unsung hero.
Eileen volunteered to come in and hang platelets on Thanksgiving so that the patient could come early in the morning and enjoy the rest of the day with her family. She is currently volunteering to fill in on the weekend and evenings to support a new breast center doctor who wants to allow more flexibility in scheduling for her patients. She continually comes in early and stays late. She frequently will change her scheduled vacation time to support staffing needs of the department.
Eileen always acts as a resource for other units. If another unit calls for help, Eileen readily goes, allowing co-workers to stay on the unit to care for our patients. She will involve herself in situations outside of the breast center's daily activities to allow departmental flow. She will do this by making necessary phone calls and negotiating with other departments and doctor's offices.
The trusting relationships with her patients extends beyond the walls of the department. A couple of years ago, one of the breast center patients was suffering with severe pain on the weekend. The patient called Eileen directly and Eileen located one of the physicians who could provide a pain medication prescription. This saved the patient a trip to the ED and aided in patient comfort.
Eileen always visits sick patients when they are admitted to the hospital. This very often is an end of life situation for a patient who has been treated for many months or years in our department. Eileen spends a lot of time caring for the family as well as the patient; consoling them and supporting them through their loss.
About a year ago, there was a young breast patient who fought very hard against her breast cancer. The patient was leaving behind a young family. Eileen persuaded the husband that it would be the time to bring the children in to see her. She brought the family together to the bedside and stayed with them during this painful time. She is a resource and support for patients and family members. She continues to get cards and calls from patients that have finished treatment and families of patients that have passed.
Eileen treats each patient with respect and dignity, allowing for expression of positive and negative feelings. She is a great comfort to patients that are ending their journeys. Although, Eileen struggled with the deaths of both of her parents this year, she continues to be a source of support for the dying patients and their families. This has been a very hard year with the deaths of many long-term patents from the Breast Center. Eileen has been at each bedside, supporting the family and providing compassionate care for the patient.
Eileen's care and compassion does not stay within the confines of Monmouth Medical Center. Yearly, Eileen coordinates a fundraiser for Making Strides Breast Cancer Walk and has raised thousands of dollars. She involves the whole family and is especially considerate of patients with young children. She organizes holiday gift and food donations for patients at the holidays, focusing on patients who have children.
Her knowledge and experience in breast cancer care was a key factor in maintaining our joint commission accreditation in breast cancer care. She engages in teaching for patients, families, and nurses on a daily basis.
Eileen maintains a kind and peaceful demeanor even through the most difficult days. She is an inspiration to her co-workers. After a particularly tough day that included visiting a patient she had been caring for several years who was dying, she said, "All I could do was hold her hand". Later, after the patient had passed, the family made a point of saying how much they appreciated her and how she had helped them throughout the entire process, starting with diagnosis. She always went above and beyond to help their mother.
The care of a patient with breast cancer is medically and emotionally challenging. It requires a special kind of nurse. Eileen is that special nurse. She develops an extraordinary rapport with her patients and their families. She has the outstanding clinical skills to expertly care for them. A recent surveyor of our breast center was amazed by the degree to which Eileen knew her patient who was randomly picked by the surveyor.
Eileen far and above portrays the qualities of the Watson Caritas Model and is a true DAISY nurse. Thank you Eileen.