How long have you been an oncology social worker?
I worked in adult oncology for three years and have been in pediatric oncology for a little over nine months now. Before that, I worked at an inpatient psychiatric facility for about seven years.

Where do you currently work? What is your position? How long have you been there? Include prior oncology social work.
I am a Four Diamonds Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Social Worker at Penn State Health Children’s Hospital in Hershey, PA. I cover the survivorship clinic, and we follow the kids for at least 10 years post treatment. My patients range from five to 30 years old. I also cover the pediatric sickle cell clinic, which sees patients up to their 22nd birthday. I have been working here for a little over nine months and absolutely love it. In my previous job, I worked as an adult oncology social worker at WellSpan Sechler Family Cancer Center (also located in Central PA) for three years. I also loved this position, but survivorship is my passion!

Where did you earn your degree(s)?
I have a BS in Psychology from Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA, and an MSW from the University of Southern California (Go Trojans!). I also recently applied to a DSW program at Millersville University in Lancaster, PA, and am hoping to start this program soon.

How long have you been a member of AOSW?
I joined AOSW the week I started working in oncology in 2014. It has been a great resource.

Have you attended the AOSW Annual Conference? When/where?
I had the pleasure of attending the 2016 Annual Conference in Tampa. It was an AWESOME experience, and I cannot wait to attend another conference. It was so valuable and very inspirational, specifically regarding ideas for program development.
 
Other professional affiliations?
I am a member of the Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers (APOSW) and serve on its conference abstract review committee. I am also a member of the Grant Review Committee for the PA Breast Cancer Coalition. I was recently inducted into Lebanon County’s Commission for Women Hall of Fame for promoting wellness and breast cancer awareness in Central Pennsylvania.

In your role as an oncology social worker/clinician, what is one of your favorite resources to share with clients? Why?
Four Diamonds of course! Penn State students and surrounding elementary and secondary schools work so hard to raise money to help our families through their annual dance marathon (THON) and mini-THONs. Four Diamonds pays all medical bills that are not covered by insurance, helps with utilities, rent/mortgage payments, etc. throughout a patient’s treatment. They also provide meal and gas vouchers to patients in active treatment and help to financially support our psychosocial programs. The look of relief on a parent’s face when he or she finds out they will not be receiving any medical bills for their child’s treatment is just so amazing. We are very lucky to have this organization as part of the Penn State Health Children’s Oncology program and are so thankful for Penn State’s Dance Marathon (THON). We could not do our job without them!

In your experience with survivors, would you share a memorable story with us?
My favorite memory so far in my career would be delivering turkey dinners to some of our patients who were in need for Thanksgiving. The appreciation the patients had for this was just very heartwarming. I had a specific patient who was so thankful and tearful for this support; she told us she would have never been able to host her family that year if it hadn’t been for this program. This is why I love this career!

In that “little something more” section, what is one thing you might share with us about you personally, one that is outside of your work life?
I was a three-time All American Cheerleader in High School and was on the All-State team for softball. I played softball in college and recently started coaching my daughter’s “8 & under” softball team with a college teammate. I am also a big kid at heart. Our favorite place to vacation is Disney; we go every year. The magic of seeing my daughter’s excitement is so amazing! I cried when I met Snow White!

Anything more you’d like to tell us?
I recently applied to Millersville University’s Doctorate in Social Work program. It has always been a personal goal of mine to receive a doctorate degree and I am so excited to start this process!

My mom and I host a fundraiser every year to raise money for local breast cancer patients who experience financial hardship. The woman must be from central PA, have children who still live at home and have private insurance that has a significant out-of-pocket cost for treatments. My mom started this fundraiser when I was diagnosed with breast cancer to help with medical costs. Since 2013 we have raised over $50,000!