Difference between Ped Onc Nurse and Ped Hem Nurse

[cardenas_a]

What is the difference between a Pediatric Hematolgy Nurse and a Pediatric Oncology Nurse? Or are they the same thing?

What is the job description of each one and what does it take to care for pediatric cancer patients???

also, how do you become those types of nurses???

[db2xs]

I am not a peds nurse but I am an adult oncology/heme nurse and I imagine the wording is the same: oncology refers to solid tumors, e.g., lung cancer, breast cancer, etc., and hematology refers to liquid tumors, i.e., blood cancers, which also includes hematological issues such as sickle cell, aplastic anemia, MDS, etc.

To become a peds heme/onc nurse, I imagine you need to get your BLS and PALS, and as far as I know, just apply to a peds position if you are a new grad. When I started off as a new grad, people in my cohort expressed their preferences to work with peds and got their choice. Keep in mind, some expressed their preferences and did not get their choice.

I applied directly to a new grad program at a comprehensive cancer center. That's how I got into heme/onc. I also knew in nursing school that that's what I wanted to work in, therefore I focused my efforts on heme/onc, e.g., requesting oncology for my final senior rotation, talking/networking with heme/onc nurses, etc.

I hope this helps!

[CalArmy]

If you are giving chemo you have to get certified which will happen on the job. Also need to learn port and picc care.

[la_chica_suerte85, BSN, RN]

On my floor we take care of both types of patients (and are therefore a peds hemonc floor).

I will give you some insight into my path on how I got here (I am getting ready to start my residency on September 6th ):

First, figure out if peds hemonc is something you really want to do. Consider finding a way to job shadow. The only way I knew this was for me was by accident: I got nothing but hemonc patients when I was doing my pediatric rotation during nursing school. I thought I would be terrified of it and that it would be so sad but it turned out to be something I was truly passionate about. So, during nursing school I got a job as a nursing assistant at a top children's hospital in my area on their hemonc floor. This unit mostly deals with solid tumors but the floor is comprehensive so we see the occasional leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell, and various other blood dyscrasias. I applied to their new grad RN Residency program and was accepted (!). I waited the painful wait of getting my authorization to test so I could take and pass my NCLEX-RN and be ready to start in September. Along with all of that, I maintained my grades (most residencies require a 3.6 GPA or so), participated in leadership positions for campus and made sure to shine bright like a dang diamond on the floor. It was a very rigorous time (3 years of working full time plus school and extracurriculars) and I worked my butt off to get a place I could call my own and to start specializing right out of the gate. In 2 years, I will be studying for the CPHON exam (Certified Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Nurse) and will eventually go back to school to do research. For now, though, I'm just learning all I can about whatever I can and maintaining a strong grasp on my nursing basics (many people say you should do adult medical/surgical the first year out of nursing school but that doesn't necessarily have to be the case -- so much of what goes on here has a major medical/surgical component, especially with overflow patients with non-hemonc diagnoses, so just because I'm specializing doesn't mean I'm not staying versatile).

Hope that helps. But, I caution you to really consider this choice. The part I was afraid about hemonc has recently become a bleak reality as things on our floor have been very difficult, more difficult than most of the nurses remember it ever being. I have cried a lot after work and I have tried to push myself to stay in touch with my feelings and to broaden my resources to keep it from crushing me entirely. It's hard, cancer kills and cancer kills kids as horribly as it kills adults (with only 4% of research funding actually going to pediatrics, which is truly shameful and has everything to do with money), if not more so because with palliative care and pain management, many doctors and families are afraid of the medicines (i.e. morphine) that can truly control a child's pain. It's devastating. But, there are brighter areas. I just know that eventually this won't be for me and I'll be moving on (hence the need to stay versatile).