March 3, 2008

It Takes a Village: Care of HSCT Recipients

Margaret Bevans, RN, PhD, AOCN^®, Clinical Nurse Scientist, Bethesda, MD

Political affiliation aside, the notion of “it takes a village” has never been truer than in the care of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) recipients. The expertise of nurses, physicians, social workers, pharmacists, dieticians, and many others is required to achieve optimal outcomes for HSCT recipients and their family. However, someone has to facilitate the efforts of so many, and I believe this is best accomplished by a nurse.

In 1993, I was given the opportunity to serve as the leader of a multidisciplinary team for our first allogeneic HSCT recipient. Each discipline was so articulate about their contribution to the recipient’s care, but something was missing: the patient and family perspective. As the primary nurse, I met with the patient and his wife to understand their expectations and goals related to transplantation. The opportunity to connect with them allowed me to infuse the team’s plan of care with their perspective. When I presented the individualized plan of care to them, the decrease in their distress was palpable.

In 2003, our transplant team celebrated our 10th anniversary with survivors, family, and friends. Our first patient returned for the celebration and presented me with a poem titled “Friend.” He and his family communicated with me their extreme gratitude for “being there in the good times as well as the trying times, growing ever closer.” This is why I became a nurse, and on that day, and many others during my career as a transplant nurse, I could “feel” it.

Click here to post a comment.