Skip to content
Health
Link copied to clipboard

Sometimes it’s social, sometimes it’s work

My name is Renee Rawlins and I have the privilege of being the social worker who supports Rachel and her parents through this journey.

Hello, my name is Renee Rawlins and I have the privilege of being the social worker who supports Rachel and her parents through this journey.

As a pediatric oncology social worker, my role is very different from patient to patient depending on their unique needs and the needs of their family. My role includes but is not limited to: providing supportive counseling to the patient and their family, providing education about hospital and community resources (Connelly Resource Center, Ronald McDonald House), helping patients and families connect with people and organizations outside of the hospital, helping to plan for going back to school, and generally partnering with them to advocate for themselves in the sometimes confusing and challenging world of living with cancer.

When I meet with patients and families I tell them they are allowed to have bad days but they will also have good days. This surprises families at first but with Rachel, her good days have greatly outnumbered her bad days. This is largely due to her relentless enthusiasm and positive attitude. On days that are not so great for Rachel, the other members of the psychosocial team and I get creative and work with her parents to come up with ways we can ease her burdens. Rachel also has a large support system of family and friends who help ensure those good days outnumber the bad days.

Recently my work with Rachel and her family has included how to balance Rachel's focus on her cancer treatment and getting well with her brave willingness to share her experience in a blog.

When I asked Rachel what her opinion is of what I do as her social worker she responded, "You visit me in my room to make sure I'm happy … and you bring fun stuff … and we talk fashion." I'm good with that description. I am fortunate to meet a great many inspiring children. Rachel is an inspiration to me, other patients, and other families. Again, I say it is a privilege to be a part of this journey with you, Rachel.

Click HERE to comment or read comments on the Onco Girl blog. Comments will be moderated.