MY LIFE Matters - Advocacy in Action - 18

Use Your Voice THE IMPORTANCE OF ACTION
Advocacy IS Action!
REGENIA WASHINGTON-REDMON, MSN, APRN, FNP-BC, AOCNP,
ADVANCED ONCOLOGY NURSE PRACTITIONER AND PATIENT ADVOCATE
W
hen I think of an ADVOCATE,
I immediately
think ACTION! The list
of verbs I associate with
my personal journey
as an advocate for patients with cancer is
expansive. Advocacy has caused me to facilitate,
champion, empower, support, educate,
promote, uphold, boost, connect, advise,
back, front, prescribe, endorse, advise,
cheer, comfort, level-set, push, bargain,
press, lobby, stand up for, and sometimes
stand in for . . .
My advocacy legacy has espoused supporting
cancer patients not only by providing
direct patient care, but by helping
them navigate an increasingly complex
healthcare system, including facilitating
consultations/referrals, moving them toward
a course of action that allows them
to be empowered with information, identify
goals, help remove barriers, overcome
obstacles, contribute to the collective body
of knowledge about cancer, and be actively
involved in decisions surrounding their
care. All these actions are rooted in love,
the patient's values, evidence-based medicine,
and a desire to positively impact their
experience and outcomes.
HOW DID I GET HERE?
Cancer has been a part of my life for as long as
I can remember . . . there was always a room
with a hospital bed set up in my Grandparent's
home in Waco, Texas. As early as three
years old, I vividly recollect that there was
a constant action surrounding the person
in that room. There was a blur of people
coming and going, repositioning, medica18
MY
LIFE MATTERS
ADVOCACY IN ACTION | FALL 2023
MY LIFE Matters - Advocacy in Action

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