NCI Links Persistent Poverty to Increased Cancer Mortality
Where a person lives has the biggest impact on their healthcare accessibility and affordability. In a new study, researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) found strong correlation between persistent poverty and cancer mortality in the United States, NCI’s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS) reported in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention.
The Case of the Virtual Venture
Staff in an oncology infusion unit located in an urban healthcare system watched as patient and caregiver stress increased during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic and the November 2020 U.S. presidential elections. During a team meeting, Holly, one of the nurses, brought up a study she read about that used virtual reality (VR) as a distraction for patients undergoing chemotherapy. The staff was interested in implementing a similar program at their institution but wasn’t sure how to start. What would you do?
Senate Bill Addresses PPE Shortage
As the country sees dramatic spikes in COVID-19 coronavirus cases in fall 2020, political leaders are seeking to find solutions to deliver personal protective equipment (PPE) to healthcare workers on the front lines. U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced the Protect Our Heroes Act of 2020 to increase the production of PPE and spur oversight into the supply and distribution of these necessary medical supplies.
NIH Announces COVID-19 Initiative to Connect With High-Risk Patient Populations
The assault on science, medicine, and research has never been stronger, flooding social media and communities with misinformation about the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The National Institutes of Health (NIH)’s new research initiative, the Community Engagement Alliance Against COVID-19 Disparities, provides community education in the areas hit hardest by the virus.
- Read more about NIH Announces COVID-19 Initiative to Connect With High-Risk Patient Populations
- Add new comment
What Is the Role of Genetic Counselors in Cancer Care?
Our understanding of cancer’s genetic components is constantly growing, with new cancer susceptibility genes discovered every year that change how we screen for and treat cancer. Genetics specialists keep up with the latest information and implications of genetic results is and can be a great addition to comprehensive oncology teams.
Lisa Kennedy Sheldon
COVID-19 Reference Sheet: Vaccines
To control the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, society needs public health measures (e.g., masks, physical distancing, hand washing), treatments for infection, and vaccines to prevent infection or serious disease. As the most trusted profession, nurses have a responsibility to educate patients and the community about the facts and science behind the vaccines. This reference sheet will help guide those conversations and is regularly updated as new information is released.
ONS Supports Bipartisan Resolution to Recognize November as National Lung Cancer Awareness Month
Lung cancer knows no state boundary or political ideology. But it can bring the two sides together, like it did when U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), member of the Senate Health Committee, and Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced a resolution to recognize November as National Lung Cancer Awareness Month. The resolution, which ONS supports, promotes the importance of and need to improve lung cancer early detection.
- Read more about ONS Supports Bipartisan Resolution to Recognize November as National Lung Cancer Awareness Month
- Add new comment
Generative Meetings Create a Foundation for Future Work
To ensure that the ONS Board of Directors is functioning efficiently and to the best of its ability to serve the ONS membership, some meetings must be generative rather than decisional. The Board held one such meeting on October 20, 2020, where it focused on developing processes, structures, and measurement plans in preparation for the future. Some key highlights of that work follow.
In a World Where You Can Be Anything, Be Kind
When I was a new graduate nurse, the first team I was assigned to was dysfunctional. Although we were kind to our patients, that didn’t carry over to our interactions with each other: some nurses made snide remarks and spread unfounded gossip, creating a toxic work environment. The tipping point came when the organization decided to change the oncology unit. The work environment didn’t promote innovation or encourage the staff to collaborate so the unit couldn’t handle the changes and eventually closed.