Oncology RN and Social Worker Integrative Health Resources 2023
Integrative medicine, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), combines conventional medicine with alternative therapies including acupuncture and yoga.1 Most practices are patient-centered and use evidence-based treatments to address the whole person.
Integrative oncology patients should get chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation. Integrative oncology uses “natural products, and/or lifestyle modifications from different traditions alongside [their] conventional cancer treatments.”2
Integrative oncology improves cancer patients’ QOL and autonomy.
Oncology nurses may benefit from patient-burden-reduction resources. Nurse experts said burnout remains a concern in health care systems during a keynote lecture at the 48th Annual Oncology Nursing Society Congress. The COVID-19 epidemic has exacerbated burnout, in my experience.
Luckily, I keep finding online tools to assist nurses and social workers adapt and build resilience.
The University of Minnesota Earl E. Bakken Center for Spirituality & Healing offers an integrated medicine program for nurses and social workers with patient-relevant findings.3 This center aims to integrate technological and human components of wellness and use an interdisciplinary approach.
These materials address burnout and resiliency. 24% of critical care nurses suffer PTSD, and 23% to 31% of primary nurses are emotionally fatigued, according to their research. Emotional fatigue.2
A 6-week online course that addresses numerous nursing workplace issues
- Mindfulness for Wellness
- Alterations to one’s lifestyle
- Taking into account one’s ideas and feelings
- Finding purpose in one’s job as a preventative measure against burnout
- Relationships and the ability to bounce back.
The institution also offers an MA in Integrative Health and Wellbeing Coaching.4 It offered the first Certificate in Integrative Therapies and Healing Practices graduate health coaching program in 2005. It added an MA in 2014.
“We are attracting professionals from many fields, including nursing, medicine, psychology, social work, and counseling, as well as many others,” stated Center Founder and Director Mary Jo Kreitzer, Ph.D., RN, FAAN.4 This program’s graduates may work in hospitals, clinics, colleges, community centers, and senior facilities.
Relevance
These materials can help cancer RNs and clinical social workers enhance their quality of life and patient care.
