Nurse educator shares advice on working in pediatric oncology

Starting work in paediatrics, especially on the oncology and hematology ward, can be daunting. It’s important to give yourself time to get your head around things.

This is a key piece of advice that Andrew Grant, acting clinical nurse educator for the oncology and hematology inpatient ward at Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, tells new staff who are starting their first day on the ward.

As a recent graduate, one of Grant’s first rotations in a hospital was on the hematology and oncology ward, and, he concedes, he too was a little daunted by it, but as he started working, he loved it.

Now, Grant is standing in for the ward’s nurse educator and works with new staff and students, helping them develop and hone skills and avoid becoming overwhelmed.

Nursing Review sat down with Grant to discuss ways nurses working in the field of pediatric oncology can protect themselves from emotional exhaustion and how working with children is different to working with adults.

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