What is it like to work as a pediatric outpatient hematology/oncology nurse caring for children with blood disorders and cancer?

Anisa Hoie, RN, knows firsthand from working at Children’s Nebraska

for 41 years.

We asked Hoie about her work as a pediatric outpatient hematology/oncology nurse. Our interview follows, edited for length and clarity.

When did you start at Children’s Nebraska, and what drew you to a career in pediatrics? 

I started at Children’s on July 18, 1983. In the early eighties, nursing was much different than it is today in the sense that there was an abundance of nurses in the Omaha area. So, when I graduated from nursing school, it was tough to find jobs. I said I just wanted to find a job in Omaha and stay here. I was a small-town, Nebraska girl who had come to the big city to go to nursing school, and I just wanted to stay here in Omaha. So there was an opportunity for a job at Children’s on a general Med Surg floor. It was a part-time position with the hope that once you were in the door, you would soon move into a full-time position. So I applied and got the job, and I started in July after passing my boards. By the fall, a full-time position came open, and I was able to work into that.

I always loved taking care of kids and did a lot of babysitting growing up. I started working up on the old sixth floor across the street in the Methodist Tower, and the unit I worked on had a lot of oncology patients. At first, I was a little taken aback by that because my oncology experience in nursing school was all with adults, which was a sad place to be in the early eighties. So, oncology was not my favorite thing in the world. When I said I wanted to stay in Omaha, I said I’d work at any hospital in Omaha as long as I didn’t get a job in an oncology unit. So, when I started up on the Med Surg floor, there were a lot of kids on the unit that I was on who were oncology patients. But I found it to be very refreshing and rewarding in the sense that kids were so different than adults. They didn’t sit around feeling sorry for themselves because they got this diagnosis. They still wanted to be kids. They would wake up in the morning and watch Sesame Street to go to the playroom and play. So they were very inspiring to care for, and I loved caring for the oncology kids. So, I worked on the sixth floor for a little over four years when the chemo nurse position came open; the nurse in that position was getting married and moving away. So, in August of 1987, that position came open; I applied for it and got the job. I started working in the Oncology Clinic as the HemOnc nurse in late August of 87, and I’ve been here ever since.

What’s most fulfilling to you in your role? 

One of the most fulfilling things is seeing a child that walks in here scared, but, over time, you build that trust with them, and they learn to trust you. When they first walk in the door, I always tell families that, while they have a very nervous little kid, I tell the parents that one day we’ll all be friends. And it’s amazing. Somewhere along the line, we all become friends, and they learn to trust us as nurses and that we’re here for them. The biggest reward is when you get that hug for the first time.

What are some things you like doing with patients? How do you break down barriers so children aren’t scared in this environment?

We’re fortunate here that we have Child Life in our clinic, and they help to bring that play element to things, and sometimes you have to be goofy when you’re a pediatric provider or team member. You know, you can’t be that serious, stoic person. Sometimes, you have to be a little goofy and silly, get down on the level, and make things games that normally aren’t. We must be willing to do things like that for these kids; they will appreciate you more and realize that you’re just another person, not as scary as it seems when they first walk in the door.

What stands out as you reflect on your last 35 years of working with this patient population? 

Oh, there are tons. You know what I found is that kids are very inspiring. I’ve always told people I’ve learned more from the kids I’ve taken care of than any adult has ever taught me: how to enjoy life and make the most of every moment you have—fortunately, the majority of the kids that you take care of become long-term survivors. But there is that little percentage of kids who unfortunately don’t survive. And you’ve had to learn to work through that on your own. My kind of thought on that is any day that I can make better for those kids when they’re going through something so hard makes me feel good, you know, if I can do something special to help them get through the days that they are encountering, make some bad days better. I’ve done my job.

You learn early on that you can’t fix everybody, unfortunately, as much as you would like to. But making the most of their days is essential to me, and working here at the hospital for 41 years has been fun. And in the clinic for 37 years. I’ve gotten to watch a lot of kids grow up. I’ve gone to lots of birthday parties, graduation parties, weddings. I get Christmas cards every year from patients who are now grown up and have their own families and parents, which I still hear from years ago. It’s been a great ride, and I wouldn’t have changed anything about what I’ve done regarding that.

I have four children of my own, and they’ve always been actively involved in going to parties with me. I think that experience gave my kids a much different perspective on life. They learned early on in life that you don’t sweat the small stuff because not playing in a basketball game or those kinds of things. Do they matter in life? You know, after they’ve seen what some of the kids here go through and deal with on a daily basis. I think it’s grounded my kids differently than they wouldn’t have had if I had not been doing what I do.

Can you talk about what it’s been like to see research/tech/treatments evolve throughout your nursing career?

We’ve made great strides in making kids long-term survivors. Now, we’re looking at what we can do to make sure that kids aren’t living with long-term side effects from their treatment. So, how can we tweak things to have good outcomes still? But see fewer long-term side effects, which is exciting. In the next ten years, there will be so many changes in the oncology world, and looking at targeted therapies has become such a big thing. Looking at, you know, what is the makeup of that child’s cancer and what can we give them to target, what is causing their cancer, and get rid of it that way. It’s exciting to see all of the changes that are coming around, and hopefully, one day, we won’t have to worry about it. That is the hope.

As you help educate and empower younger nurses entering the field or our organization, what advice do you give them? 

I like to instill in people that caring and getting involved is okay. To do what we do in the oncology clinic, you must care because those parents need you. We’re like a big family up here; that was always the case through the years. That’s what we want to relay to our patients and their families – that we’re part of their family once they walk through our doors. So, it’s okay to care and become a part of that family and give a little of yourself because the reward you’ll receive back is gigantic.

The post A Day in the Life: Pediatric Outpatient Hematology/Oncology Nurse first appeared on Daily Nurse.