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Nursing Issues and the Role of the Specialist Nurse in Breast Care

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Breast Cancer Management for Surgeons

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Abstract

This chapter details the differing roles of the specialist nurse who increasingly works within the breast care arena in some European countries, providing an increasingly valued role within the multidisciplinary team. It will illustrate the different threads to the nurse’s role and specify the differentials between the three main job titles, clinical nurse specialist, nurse practitioner and consultant nurse. The aspects of the specialist nurse who works within breast care will be discussed along with role extension and expansion. Additionally the need to work across differing providers of care will be touched upon as well as the importance of including family and caregivers when providing support for patients. Cancer survivorship will be mentioned and the necessity for leadership in healthcare. Potential challenges for the future of this workforce have also been identified and highlighted.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Breast Care Unit, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Road, London, W6 8RF, UK

    Victoria Harmer DHC

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  1. Victoria Harmer DHC
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Correspondence to Victoria Harmer DHC .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Medical School Department of Oncology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom

    Lynda Wyld

  2. Athens University Medical School, Athens, Greece

    Christos Markopoulos

  3. Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland

    Marjut Leidenius

  4. Department of Oncology & Radiotherapy, Gdańsk Medical University Department of Oncology & Radiotherapy, Gdańsk, Poland

    Elżbieta Senkus-Konefka

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Harmer, V. (2018). Nursing Issues and the Role of the Specialist Nurse in Breast Care. In: Wyld, L., Markopoulos, C., Leidenius, M., Senkus-Konefka, E. (eds) Breast Cancer Management for Surgeons. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56673-3_61

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56673-3_61

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-56671-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-56673-3

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