Nurses Need to Recognize the Unique Needs of Older Adults With Cancer

The number of U.S. adults aged 65 and over is rapidly increasing: by 2030, they’re estimated to represent about 70% of cancer diagnoses. During a session on Friday, April 12, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA, speakers discussed how the complexities of cancer care can affect the expanding population of older adults with cancer.

When a Child Is Dying, Parents Need to Hear “We’ve Done Everything We Could”

What the parents of a child dying from cancer need to hear above all from the healthcare professionals caring for their child is that everything possible has been done, to the best of the health care team’s ability, said Pamela S. Hinds, PhD, RN, FAAN, in the 2019 Mara Mogensen Flaherty Memorial Lecture on Friday, April 12, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA.

Speakers Discuss Strategies for Reducing Workplace Violence

Workplace violence is both highly prevalent and underreported in health care settings, according to Melissa Weigel, RN, and Lorina Welper, APRN, CNS, MS, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, who spoke during a session on Friday, April 12, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA.

Advance Care Planning: It’s About Life

Many times, when patients are asked about their wishes at the end-of-life, they perceive it as asking how they want to die, which can be scary for patients and a hard conversation for nurses. What if there was a way to change that conversation to suggest that it is way more about how the patient would want to live? In her session “Advance Care Planning: It’s About Life,” on Friday, April 12, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA, Erin Dickman explained how the advance care planning process can help nurses hold those conversations.

ONS 44th Annual Congress Opening Celebrates Nurse Inventors and Nurse-Led Innovation

Keynote speaker and ONS member Rachel Walker, PhD, RN, nurse inventor and assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts, emphasized the vital role nurses play as agents of innovation and invention in practice during the opening session on Thursday, April 11, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA.

Combining Radiation With Immunotherapy May Improve Survival

Combining radiation with immunotherapy can enhance the immune system’s ability to fight cancer, and evidence now suggests that this synergy may lead to improved patient survival, Annette E. Quinn, RN, MSN, of the University of Pittsburgh Hillman Cancer Center, said during a session on Thursday, April 11, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA.

Innovations in Surgical Oncology: What Nurses Need to Know

Robotic surgery represents the most significant advancement to date in minimally invasive surgery, Lisa Parks, MS, APRN-CP, ANP-BC, of James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, said during a session on Thursday, April 11, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA.

Patient Comfort Is Key to Managing Radiation Side Effects

Radiation therapy may cause traumatic side effects in patients with cancer, yet many standard management strategies lack strong evidence. During their session at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA, Renata Benc, RN, BA, MSc(A), CON(C), of Jewish General Hospital of the Integrated Health and Social Services University Network for West-Central Montréal in Quebec, Canada, and John Hillson, RN, BSN, BA, OCN®, of Duke Cancer Institute in Durham, NC, instructed nurses on how to support patients undergoing radiation treatment.

Education and Support Are Vital for Patients Undergoing Radiation Therapy

Oncology nurses are a vital source of education and support for patients undergoing radiation therapy, enabling patients to complete therapy and minimize side effects, Richard L.S. Jennelle, MD, of the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, said during a session on Thursday, April 11, 2019, at the ONS 44th Annual Congress in Anaheim, CA.

Different Strategies Needed for Orienting New Graduates and Experienced Nurses to Ambulatory Oncology

Oncology care has shifted from the hospital inpatient setting to outpatient ambulatory care. Indications are that this will be a continuing and expanding trend for the future, increasing the need for ambulatory care nurses. Ambulatory care is complex and requires highly specialized nursing skills gained with education and experience. Most new graduate nurses are employed in acute care settings rather than ambulatory settings because they lack the skill set needed for ambulatory care. How can ambulatory care settings bridge the education and experience gap to fill this expanding need?

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