Andrea sets goals every day, and although her goals often change as the day goes on,one goal remains the same. "I want to be enough of an educator to our patients and families that they feel comfortable taking care of themselves," she says. "If I can do that, then I have done a good deed for the day."
A primary nurse in the thoracic oncology department, Andrea knew early on in her career that she wanted to help cancer patients. "I want to empower them," she says. "In fourteen years,I have seen the life expectancy of lung cancer patients get longer and longer." That progress keeps her motivated,and she knows clinical trials are a big part of that success. Clinical trials are the greatest means of finding better treatments and eventually a cure for lung cancer.
Her days revolve around providing education -- educating people about chemotherapy and the side effects it may have; educating people about the role diet may play in their treatment; and educating patients and caregivers about managing side effects. While educating patients about maintaining balance in their lives, the primary aim, she says,is to help patients and family members manage the stress and anxiety they experience.
Lung cancer comes with a built-in stigma, but Andrea looks beyond that. The public wrongly assumes that all lung cancer patients are smokers. Andrea knows this is not accurate, so it doesn't impact her job. The "how and why" people get cancer is not important to her. "Often they (patients) don't say they have lung cancer, they just tell people it is cancer." All Andrea knows is that her patients are sick and they and their families need care, information, and a smile -- which she has plenty of.
She has a true empathy for lung cancer patients. She feels they face each day differently. Just being able to breathe can make all the difference in having a good or bad day. "Shortness of breath brings on a fear, it can be paralyzing."
Working with lung cancer patients can be emotionally difficult. Many patients have a poor prognoses and they are angry or depressed or scared. Andrea deals with those emotions by recalling all the times family members thanked her for her care."I think of all the good moments," she says.
The days of a thoracic oncology nurse are long. She and the other nurses respond to twenty to thirty patient phone calls a day. Each team member is busy right up to the end of the day. She loves it. "I wouldn't know what to do if it wasn't busy. I like it busy -- it means we are helping people."
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