view . spring 2013
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As a young nursing student, Rita DiBiase BScN ’96
had an experience
that changed her understanding of
the profession.
“I was alone with a patient, maybe in his 40s, whose
cancer was so advanced it was visible,” she recalls. “He
called me to his bedside and said ‘Please don’t tell my
family, but I know I’m dying’.”
When DiBiase finished up,
she met the man’s family in the
hallway and heard from them:
“Please don’t let him know he’s
dying. We don’t talk about that
in our culture.” Her first instinct
was to bring the patient and his
family together so they could air
their feelings, but that plan was
scotched when she consulted
with her nursing professor.
“The professor told me:
‘Your first responsibility is to the
patient, you must respect what he
wants’,” DiBiase says. “I needed
to be available to him separate from the family, as well as
available to meet the family’s needs.”
It was a lesson that the grad says she has
never forgotten.
Now a nurse practitioner working with the Windsor
Regional Cancer program, she says University of Windsor’s
new graduate diploma in advanced practice oncology/
palliative nursing will give its graduates the tools to work
in this field.
“Working in oncology can be very rewarding, with
many stories of hope and successes. The other reality
is that it can expose you to death and dying. It can be
a challenge to deal with on a personal level as well as
professionally.”
The diploma program, the only one of its kind in
Ontario, is currently accepting applications for its first
cohort, to begin in September 2013. Organizers hope to
attract an initial enrolment of six to 10 students, with no
more than 12 in any entering
class. Aimed at nurses and nurse
practitioners holding master’s
degrees, it is designed to provide
the knowledge and skills essential
for nursing management of the
cancer patient, and for the care
of patients at the end of life.
Linda Patrick BScN ’90,
MScN ’97, dean of the
University of Windsor’s Faculty
of Nursing, says the need
for these professional skills
is growing, especially with
the escalating numbers of
seniors and people living longer with chronic diseases
and serious life-threatening illnesses. She says that
the shortage of trained oncology nurses is particularly
troubling, given that 38 per cent of women and 41 per
cent of men will develop cancer over the course of their
lifetimes.
“Cancer centres across the province have identified a
need for more nurses trained in oncology care. We believe
that our program can assure Ontarians of high-quality
specialized cancer care, close to home, from nurses who
achieve specialty graduate education.”
“CANCER CENTRES ACROSS
THE PROVINCE HAVE
IDENTIFIED A NEED FOR
MORE NURSES TRAINED
IN ONCOLOGY CARE.”
LINDA PATRICK,
DEAN OF NURSING
BY KEVIN JOHNSON
CANCER CARE
At left: Nursing professors Laurie Freeman-Gibb and Jason Kiernan in the UWindsor simulation lab.
The challenges of oncology nursing
