Haematology/Oncology Day Hospital Nurses at SickKids Hospital
August 2023
Haematology/Oncology Day Hospital Nurses
at SickKids Hospital
8D
SickKids Hospital
Toronto
,
Ontario
Canada
Karla Kerrigan, Senior Clinical Manager
Nicole Thompson-Cotterell, RN
Lindsay Lysecki, RN
Jill Watt, RN
Tamara Lockwood, RN
Rita Mastrogiovanni, RN
Janey Kim, RN
Janyce Furac, RN
Ashley Collins, RN
Tara Baxter, RN
Silvia Moreno, RN
Briar ONeil, RN
Lillian Luik, RN
Erika Srigley, RN
Abigail Faminial, RN
Sarah Kamal, RN
Angela Ho, RN
Ashleigh Kowalyk, RN
Sabrina Seymour, RN
June Quimbo, RN
Marlie Smith, RN
Andrea Hooker, RN
Amisa Hassan, RN
Jennifer Cabral, RN
Courtney Maganja, RN
Sarah Van Meer, RN
Andrea Polidori, RN
Natalie Botica, RN
Jessica Brooks, RN
Kathy Bell, RN
Bianca Agyakwa-Bempong, RN
Aimee Chung, RN
Qi Hua Zou, RN
Tara de Boyrie, RN
Susan Macphee, RN
Emily Hopkins, RN
Catherine Van Esch, RN
Jennifer Furtado, RN
Kimberly OHoski, RN
Cally Bolton, NP
Daniela Belcastro, RN
Ciley Riggs, RN
Mary Davis, RN
Emma Hanks, RN
Jessica Connely, RN
Jaime Jones, RN
Ashley Choi, APN
Nicole Ribaric, RN
Kafia Ibrahim, RN
Stephanie Dos-Santos, RN
Sarah Hamilton, RN
Nicole Fedorowicz, RN
Hayley Bean, RN
Karen Frecker, RN
Eric Dodwell, RN
Trina Irvine, RN
Helen Yusuf, RN
Joanna Kumpula, RN
Ela Piro, RN
Cassandra Nunes, RN
Darien Nueve, RN

 

 

 

For over 10 years, 8D Hematology/Oncology Clinic RNs have welcomed ED RN learners to their clinic to improve technical skills, such as port-a-cath needle insertion, and interact with patients and families in a non-emergency setting. This group of compassionate RNs made patients with cancer and their families feel valued and heard by listening to their feedback that they feel nervous about going to the Emergency Department (ED) for care. Patients and families were concerned that the ED RN staff were not as proficient at port-a-cath needle insertion and that they did not understand the journey of cancer treatment as well as their home team. Care in the Emergency Department can be life-saving for cancer patients who are at high risk of sepsis or may have other serious health concerns. Recognizing the need for a collaborative approach to care, the 8D Hematology/Oncology Clinic RNs invited every ED RN orientees to visit them for a morning in clinic, with the goal to provide excellent child and family-centred care for their patients, not only in their own area but in the ED as well. Approximately 200 ED RNs have been precepted by an 8D for a morning in the busy clinic over the past 10-15 years. The tips, tricks, and supportive coaching have given new ED RN orientees skills and confidence to deliver high quality care to all patients with port-a-cath devices. Feedback from ED RN learners has been overwhelmingly positive. Many of them have reported that the 8D RNs have involved the patients and families in the learning experience and have helped the patients and families get to know the ED RNs in a familiar environment. The ED RN learners report that the expert coaching from 8D RNs has improved their success rate at port-a-cath insertion and has helped them to empathize with the patient and family journey through cancer treatment, which can include unplanned trips to the ED. Thank you for the consistent over 10-year commitment to collaborative learning to not only provide excellent child and family-centered care but to support another area to achieve it too.