An oncology clinical experience in an Israeli baccalaureate nursing program

Cancer is a serious health hazard in Israel. There is, therefore, a need to appropriately prepare nurses to administer quality care to oncology patients. Hadassah-Hebrew University School of Nursing has designed and implemented a routine clinical oncology experience for third- and fourth-year students in their baccalaureate nursing program. The clinical experience includes a special orientation day, exposure to treatment modalities, rotations through several oncology settings, post-conference sessions devoted to cancer pain control, and the spiritual needs of cancer patients. Although the experience does not make the students oncology experts, it gives them a greater awareness of the multifaceted nature of oncology nursing.