At Baylor, it takes all kinds of nurses to help fulfill the College’s mission of excellence in patient care, research and education. Every day this week, BCM Family will share a Q-and-A with a nurse who works at Baylor College of Medicine.

Read more about some of these special healthcare professionals, and be sure to wish them and others a Happy Nurses Week this May 6 – 12!

Q: How long have you been working at Baylor?

A: Five years total, but eight months as a research nurse

Q: Describe your role as a research nurse.

A: My role includes screening, enrolling and evaluating patients that participate in a research study. Also, coordinating visits, treatments, labs, diagnostic procedures, specimen collection and follow up. Pretty much anything that is required by the research study that particular patient is enrolled. My patient demographic mainly includes Harris Health’s hematology / oncology unit located at the Smith Clinic.

Q: What is the best thing about being a nurse at Baylor College of Medicine?

A: The best thing is the teamwork that happens behind the scenes before you even see a patient. A lot of preparation must occur prior to seeing a patient so that the experience is as smooth and seamless as possible for our patients. They are fighting for their lives, so we have to make sure that they are comfortable and have a thorough understanding of the research study. So, having help from regulatory and finance colleagues as well as from my fellow research coordinators and PIs makes being a research nurse at Baylor College of Medicine even more gratifying.

Q: Anything else you want to add?

A: As a research nurse I have gained valuable insight into the intricacies of cancer research, and the best part is witnessing a patient on a clinical trial find success that they could not achieve with traditional standard of care treatment. That is when you get to tell yourself “It was all worth it.”

Read more about Dawn Smith’s work as a research nurse in the Baylor Blog Network.

By Dana Benson