Nurse Navigator Core Competencies: An Update to Reflect the Evolution of the Role.

Background: The Oncology Nursing Society published Oncology Nurse Navigator (ONN) Core Competencies in 2013. However, a 2016 role delineation study (RDS) indicated that the role had evolved since their release. The RDS also indicated that a growing number of nurse navigators have extensive oncology and navigation experience.

The State of Cancer Rehabilitation in the United States.

The field of cancer rehabilitation and prehabilitation has grown significantly over the past decade. Advancements in early detection and treatment have resulted in a growing number of cancer survivors in the United States (US), expected to reach 26 million by 2040. Health care professional graduate education is trying to catch up with anticipated clinical demand by increasing the number of cancer rehabilitation fellowship training programs and introducing rehabilitation/prehabilitation concepts earlier in training.

Cancer survivorship advocacy.

Objectives: To review the advocacy initiatives of major cancer-related organizations and coalitions that are working to effect funding, planning, and implementation of care and services for cancer survivors.

Data Sources: Web sites of cancer-related member organizations, advocacy associations' policy staff representatives, and published peer-reviewed health policy literature.

Conclusion: Health care reform creates near endless opportunities for nurses to participate in and contribute to the development of public policy to support meeting the needs of cancer survivors.

Evolving nursing science and practice in cancer survivorship.

Objectives: To review the status of cancer survivorship care planning and delivery, resources and tools available to advance care, and explore professional nursing's potential to affect the quality of care available to cancer survivors.

Data Sources: Published peer reviewed literature, web-based resources, and cancer-related professional organizations' resources.

Conclusion: The population of cancer survivors is characterized as "booming," and available resources are also booming.

Development of a breast navigation program.

Objectives: To review the development of a navigation program in a major US academic health care institution, and provide guidance for navigation programmatic development in other settings.

Data Sources: The Johns Hopkins Breast Center Steering Committee minutes, Hospital Cancer Registry; administrative data, and literature.

Conclusion: Incorporating navigation services throughout the cancer continuum, from diagnosis to survivorship, provides guidance for patients with cancer.

Patient navigation in the oncology care setting.

Objectives: To review the evolution and current status of patient navigation in cancer care settings, discuss challenges as navigation evolves, and suggest education and research needs to optimize outcomes associated with navigation processes and nurse navigator roles.

Data Sources: Literature review, association publications, and government and non-governmental documents.

Conclusion: Since its inception over two decades ago, navigation programs have been established in hospitals in the United States, Canada, Australia, and other nations.

Cancer nursing: the modern era.

Purpose/objectives: To identify critical elements of the major shift in cancer nursing practice, education, and the expectations of professional nursing immediately following World War II that were precursors of contemporary oncology nursing preparation and practice.

Data Sources: General healthcare, medical, and nursing literature, particularly in the American Journal of Nursing, published after World War II and before the inception of the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS); archival materials in the collection of ONS; nursing history literature; and personal communications.

Data Synthesis: Nurses in a wide variety of practice settings with varied levels of experience, including staff nurses, homecare nurses, and high-level leaders and decision makers of the time, were responsible for bringing attention to and addressing the challenges and joys of cancer nursing.

Advanced cancer: a mind-body-spirit approach to life and living.

Objectives: To present the nursing theory of Modeling and Role Modeling as a holistic theoretical basis for identifying needs, planning and implementing care and services, and measuring and enhancing outcomes of programs and interventions to meet the needs of people living with advanced cancer.

Data Sources: Published books and journal articles, web resources, newspapers and current events magazines, and trade publications.

Conclusion: The growing number of people living with advanced cancer has numerous unique, multi-dimensional, and interrelated needs that are underexplored, generally unmet, and require a holistic approach to be adequately addressed.

Advanced cancer: emergence of a new survivor population.

Objectives: To summarize the scientific and technologic advances contributing to the increasing number of people who are living with advanced cancer, associated economic costs, psychosocial burdens, and public policy.

Data Sources: Published books and journal articles, web resources, newspapers and news magazines.

Conclusion: Scientific and technologic advances, combined with unidentified inherent traits, allow some people with advanced cancer to live for varying and increasingly long periods of time.

Living to the end: Merging holistic and evidence-based strategies to meet the needs of people living with advanced cancer.

With advances in the treatment and long-term management of cancer, the number of people living with metastatic and advanced cancers has continued to grow. Yet their issues and concerns, and those of their family caregivers, are often neglected. Despite the paucity of high levels of evidence for best-practice care of this distinct survivor population, we can and must start now to consistently address their needs, changing or adapting practice as new evidence becomes available.

Cancer nursing: past, present, and future.

This article explores the context and nursing care that was provided to people facing the challenges imposed by cancer diagnoses throughout history and issues that influence cancer nursing as it continues to evolve in the twenty-first century. Considerations and potential strategies for the nursing profession to address these issues are offered.

Healing with horses: fostering recovery from cancer with horses as therapists.

Nearly 10 years ago, I looked at a poster exhibit for a nonprofit organization's camping experience for cancer survivors. One of the images in particular remains with me to this day. It was of an elderly man wearing a cowboy hat and the great grin on his wrinkled face as he stood next to a beautiful sorrel horse.