Abstract
Welcome to this inaugural issue of the newly renamed Journal of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nursing! We are excited to announce this name change to better reflect our commitment to improving care for all children with cancer and blood disorders and to be a source of evidence-based information for the nurses and other healthcare providers who care for them every day.
With this first issue of the newly renamed journal, we chose the topic of integrative health because of the increased interest and use of various complementary approaches in the care of children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer and blood disorders. These patients experience distressing symptoms and conditions throughout their disease and treatment trajectories. Unfortunately, many symptoms are not effectively managed with conventional care alone and may persist and even worsen into survivorship. Complementary therapies, which include a wide range of mind and body practices, natural products, and lifestyle interventions, may be used by these young patients and their families to help manage challenging symptoms. These interventions are considered ‘integrative health’ when used in a coordinated approach with conventional treatments (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, 2021).
The authors in this issue are scholars and providers with expertise in different fields of integrative heath. These manuscripts add evidence and provide insight about interventions that nurses and other providers can incorporate into their practice to best meet the needs of the patients we serve. Nelson and colleagues report on childhood cancer survivors’ interest in using complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) as young adults and which survivors are likely to have unmet needs related to CAM. In a primary research report, Thrane et al. provide evidence for the use of Reiki therapy in very young, hospitalized children receiving palliative care to promote relaxation and improve mental outcomes in parents. In another report, Hoag and colleagues offer evidence about the use of therapeutic recreation to improve mood and sleep in hospitalized children. Raybin’s report is a review of evidence from a small number of comparative studies that examined the use of creative arts therapy to reduce distress from common symptoms, such as pain, nausea, fatigue, and anxiety. Tomlinson and colleagues propose ways that nurses can incorporate mindfulness practices, such as mindful breathing and movement, into practice to relieve common symptoms and emotional responses, such as sadness and anger. Knott et al. describe how music therapy can be used to meet several psychosocial standards of care for children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer and provide illustrating examples.
Nurses care for many young patients who do not get relief from distressing physical and psychological symptoms, and nurses witness how unrelieved symptoms affect the well-being of patients and families. This suffering affects nurses as well as their patients. In collaboration with interprofessional colleagues, nurses need to continue to develop, test, and build evidence for effective integrative interventions to improve health outcomes in children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer and blood disorders. We hope this special issue provides some guidance regarding therapies that can be incorporated into the care of our patients and spurs interest in continuing work in this important area of research and practice.