Recent Nursing School Graduate Finds Purpose as a Pediatric Oncology Nurse

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Nurse Lauren Love

Lauren Love knew early on that nursing was right for her and pursued the profession while still in high school.

Love was accepted into the Collin College Dual-Credit EMT program as a senior in Allen, Texas, gaining valuable hands-on experience in emergency rooms and on ambulance calls. The year before, she'd earned a Certified Nursing Assistant license. The EMT training confirmed that nursing was where she belonged.

Love's experience as a University of Arkansas freshman helped define that calling. Her sorority, Delta Delta Delta, supported St. Jude Children's Research Hospital through philanthropic events.

"After visiting St. Jude, I knew that I wanted to better the lives of children with cancer," she said. "During nursing school, I had the opportunity to spend a day on the hematology/oncology unit at Arkansas Children's Hospital and it furthered my love for this population."

While a student in the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing, Love also honed her leadership capabilities. In March 2018, she was elected as the first Student Nurses Association fundraising chair. She was responsible for events and fundraisers to help EMSON students participate in conventions and other nursing opportunities. She was voted president of the Arkansas Nursing Students' Association for the 2018-19 term.

Love also gained valuable research experience. During her junior and senior years at the U of A, she completed an honors thesis under the guidance of Dr. Marilou Shreve in the College of Education and Health Professions. It explored the perceptions and attitudes about health among Marshallese adolescents who live in Northwest Arkansas.

"The goal of my project was to investigate themes for commonality among adolescents who are overweight about how they perceive their weight and their beliefs toward health and body image," she said. 

Love plans to use her findings to better communicate with overweight and obese adolescents, encouraging them to reach a healthy body mass index.

In November 2019, Love presented her thesis research poster at the National Student Nurses Association's Midyear Conference in Chicago. Her thesis paper will be published soon.

The summer before her last semester at the Eleanor Mann School, Love landed a position at the prestigious Mayo Clinic. She was a nurse extern on the hematology/oncology floor.

"I had the opportunity to learn from an oncologist, observe the administration of chemotherapy to patients with various types of malignancy, and see the importance of having a compassionate bedside manner," she said.

Love is now a pediatric oncology nurse at the Children's Cancer Hospital-University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

"My current purpose is to be the person who can make a child smile — even though I am giving her painful chemotherapy — as well as being a beacon of hope and support for the families of my patients," she said.

Love said the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing and the honors program in the College of Education and Health Professions helped jumpstart her nursing career.

"I am truly thankful for all of the experiences that allowed me to land my dream job in a specialty I love," she said.

This story is the latest in a series called the Dean's Spotlight, featuring outstanding students in the College of Education and Health Professions. Visit COEHP's online magazine, the Colleague, for more news from the six units that make up the College. Visit the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing page for more information on COEHP's nursing program.