12 U A B C O M P R E H E N S I V E C A N C E R C E N T E R

AFTER MORE than two years of research and labor, a team of oncology nurses has com- piled and published the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center s first-ever patient guide. The purpose of the resource is to walk each patient through the journey of cancer by answering common questions and providing an overview of UAB services. The guide covers treatment and clinical trials as well as education and supportive services.

Cancer is the one diagnosis that liter- ally stops people in their tracks, says Faye Williams, R.N., M.S.N., NE-BC, OCN, nurse manager in the Cancer Center s Inpatient Medical Oncology Unit. When you hear that word, your world comes to a stop. Information is how we get that going again.

Mrs. Williams says that in addition to being kind, caring and competent, nurses are the primary information source for patients. That s why so many oncology nurses who worked on the project were not just passionate but also resolute about getting resources into patients hands, she says.

We all hear the word cancer, and we see stuff, but when it s you, you feel isolated, you feel alone, you feel like nobody out there knows or understands what you re going

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New Patient Guide