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Sharon Lamkin,
RN
Oncology
 "It's
a profession that you've got to love. I can't think of anything else I'd
rather be doing."
"I had a sister-in-law who worked here. That was back when St. John’s
had the nursing program. She became a nurse through that. I think she
encouraged me to come out here for a job.
It’s a great place to work. It’s changed over the years. Things
are not the same as they were 30 years ago when I started. But I really
like it. I can’t imagine working anyplace else at this point.
The shifts are flexible. There are three different shifts plus weekend
options, so you can pretty well work your schedule around what you need.
Oncology is like one big family. We all work together to take care of
our patients. If one of us doesn’t have time to do something that
needs to be done, another team member will jump in and do it. We’re
a very tight-knit group. We’re very hard working, very dedicated
to giving patient care.
 Sometimes
it’s very hectic, and you need a lot of energy. There are a lot of
changes. It’s very busy, and the time goes really fast.
A good number of our patients are very, very ill. If I can do anything
to make them more comfortable, especially their last breath, it’s
important.
We give the families a lot of information and support. We try to prepare
them for the illness as best we can and tell them always that each person
is different. We have chaplains on 24 hours a day to talk with the families.
Sometimes we say a prayer with the family if we feel comfortable with
that.
You can help people in this profession. You can comfort people; you can
comfort families. You have to be a caring, compassionate person in order
to do it. If you want to help people, it’s a great place to help
people."
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