How Social Workers Help Our Patients

Our oncology social workers talk with patients and their families about emotional or physical needs, and help them find support services and other appropriate community resources.

A cancer diagnosis can affect many areas of a patient’s life, causing them to feel overwhelmed.

Some of the needs that social workers will commonly identify and assist with include:

  • Transportation and housing needs
  • Financial concerns that patients may have about paying medical bills, rent, or utilities
  • Limitations that patients may have independently performing daily life needs, such as bathing, cooking, or dressing
  • Support for mental health, emotional health, or self-image concerns
  • Advanced care planning and documenting future healthcare wishes 

In this episode of our podcast, Cancer Care Today, we explore the role of the oncology social worker and the ways in which they help patients and their families navigate the many emotional, social, and financial aspects of a cancer diagnosis.

 



Nicole Reitsma, LICSW, is a certified oncology social worker and part of the Minnesota Oncology social work team.

Social Worker Podcast

Share

Categories

Tags

Recent Posts

#
March 21, 2024

We know the importance of safeguarding your data and are committed to maintaining the highest standards of privacy and security. Change Healthcare reports that their privacy office and information security teams are working to understand the impact to patients. At this time, we have not received any notices that your personal or medical data has been compromised because of this outage.

#
March 20, 2024

March is Myeloma Awareness Month. Myeloma begins when a plasma cell becomes abnormal. The abnormal cell divides to make copies of itself. The new cells divide again and again, making more and more abnormal cells. These abnormal plasma cells are called myeloma cells.

#
March 19, 2024

Approximately 81,600 new cases of kidney cancer ― more than 52,000 in men and 29,000 in women ― will be diagnosed in the U.S. this year, and 14,390 people ― 9,450 men and 4,940 women ― will die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society.