oncology nurse navigator | JParadisi RN's Blog

One aspect of changing nursing specialties, or being a new nurse for that matter, is the agreement to do homework to get up to speed. Being a certified oncology infusion nurse, while helpful, does not make me an expert in my new oncology nurse navigator position. Though working with preceptors who generously share learning, the responsibility of identifying my knowledge gaps, and seeking resources to fill them is mine.

Newly graduated nurse, I hate to break this news to you: graduating from nursing school doesn’t mean you’re done with homework. It’s the opposite. Nursing school provides the tools for finding information you need to succeed in any nursing job throughout your career. I’m serious. When early in my career a pediatric intensive care nurse befriended me, and agreed to be my mentor, the first thing she did was hand me a hardcover, 1,000+ page copy of Mary Fran Hazinski’s then gold standard text, Nursing Care of The Critically Ill Child, saying, “Read it. You can keep it too, because I just bought the newest edition,” cluing me in that expert level nurses continue learning.

I read the tome twice: the first time by looking up the diagnoses of every patient I was assigned to learn their assessment, and then understand the medical care plan. The second time, a few years later, I read it cover to cover preparing for pediatric CCRN certification.

In similar fashion, these days my evenings and days off are occupied with an hour or more of reading about nurse navigation. Yes, I’m a bit of a nerd, but the fact is I haven’t been this excited about nursing in years. Nursing school is just the beginning of a career of learning.

A goal is a dream with a deadline.

-multiple Internet attributions.

I have a new job, one that I envisioned when I transitioned from pediatrics to oncology nursing in 2001.

I am an oncology nurse navigator.

If you don’t know what an oncology nurse navigator is you’re not alone. Most of the time when I tell another nurse about my new job, his or her eyes go blank, and I get a sincere, but confused, “Oh congratulations!” Surprisingly, or maybe not, it’s my layman friends who get it right away, “It’s about time the medical profession started hiring people to help us find our way through the complexity of health care.”

I can’t agree more.

Patients are referred to a navigator after a diagnosis of cancer. The role involves patient education, distress assessment, providing resources, and emotional support throughout treatment. The goal is patient-centered care that prevents patients from “falling through the cracks” of the health care system. Confusion arises because some duties of the nurse navigator resemble those of case managers and social workers, however, nurse navigators offer comprehensive oversight of patient care needs, and advocacy. Further, the American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer mandates patient navigation for cancer program accreditation. A source of more information is the American Academy of Oncology Nurse Navigators’ website.

One of many adjustments is my work hours have increased from nearly full-time to full-time. But there’s so much to write about! As I get a handle on things, I suspect the focus of JParadisiRN blog will shift closer than ever to “where science, humanity, and art converge.”