Nurses living with Lymphedema

 

                                         Catherine Holley, BSN, RN, CLT Nurse 

                                      Certified Lymphedema Therapist

"For 33 years, I have camouflaged my leg, remaining fairly private about it. Two years ago, as an operating room nurse in a busy Boston hospital, I cared for a patient who also had lymphedema; however, she’d never been seen by a specialist and did not know how to manage it. At that moment, I knew I needed to share my story with her and give her the resources for finding help. That experience really changed my life in accepting this crazy disease and the importance of spreading awareness" (Holley (2017, para 1). 

Holley, C. (2017). Welcome message from Massachusetts Chapter co-Chair. Retrieved on October 30, 2022 at Welcome message from Massachusetts Chapter co-Chair Catherine Holley, RN | Lymphatic Education & Research Network (lymphaticnetwork.org)

Living with Lymphedema: One Nurse's Journey as Patient and Advocate - YouTube

                                Rebecca Koszalinski, RN, PhD               

Dr. Koszalinski wrote about working with with a state Vocational Rehabilitation program as a nurse with lower limb lymphedema. 

"Your state vocational rehabilitation representative most likely won’t be a nurse or an expert on alternative nursing career paths. To them, a nurse is a nurse—period. That is why you need to help them help you. They can’t support your case unless they understand your goals and have documentation to support the plan. Be prepared for a lack of understanding and rejections. Again, it is not personal. Justification is not based on the number of years you have worked but on your physical condition and the probability that you will return to work if they support you(p.29)." 

Koszalinski, R. (2014) Navigating the Vocational Rehabilitation System: Nursing following injury and disability. In D.C. Maheady (Ed.) The Exceptional Nurse: Tales from the trenches of truly resilient nurses working with disabilities. (pp. 26-32). CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

Ellen Szelina RN (retired)

 "After her 2011 treatment for breast cancer, she developed lymphedema in her left arm — severe, chronic swelling that sometimes occurs after lymph node removal or radiation treatment." 

"No matter how careful she was, Szelina’s lymphedema regularly triggered infections that were accompanied by a high fever and painful swelling in her arm and hand. Each time, she’d have to spend a few days in the hospital getting IV antibiotics."

"Then, in 2014, she read about David W. Chang, MD, chief of plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of Chicago Medicine and a world-renowned lymphedema microsurgeon."

"Chang pioneered a unique, complex surgery for lymphedema patients that reroutes the lymphatic system around damaged lymph nodes." 

 "Her surgery in 2016 was successful, and Szelina is back to doing the things she loves. In June, she and her family rode mules down into the Grand Canyon — something she’d never dared to do before the surgery" (Bartosch, 2019).

Bartosch, J. (2019). Lymphedema microsurgery gives retired nurse her life back. U Chicago Medicine.

 Retrieved on 11/16/2022 at https://www.uchicagomedicine.org/forefront/cancer-articles/lymphedema-surgery-gives-retired-nurse-her-life-back

Cheers!

Donna