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A Day in the Life of a GBMC Radiation Oncology nurse

Posted at 2:28 PM, Jun 28, 2016
and last updated 2018-12-27 16:32:22-05

For Lisa Blevins, being a nurse in the radiation oncology department is about more than just taking care of a patient's physical needs.

It's also about taking care of a patient's emotional wellbeing.

"Yes we take care of all the side effects and we take care of, you know, the things that they need medically, but we also need to be there on an emotional level," Blevins said.

PHOTOS: A Day in the Life of a GBMC Radiation Oncology nurse

She explained the hardest part of her job is finding out where a patient is coming from. This can mean anything from emotional response to diagnosis and treatment to what a patient's family reaction is like.

"I kind of have to find out where they are, what their thinking is so that we can then educate them so that they can be more comfortable with their treatment. We want to participate with them during their treatment so that we can better care for them," Blevins said.

Her biggest lesson from working with cancer patients is that life is precious.

"We don't how much life we have or how long of life we have, but to make the best of it and the most of it," she said.

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