SAN DIEGO—Elizabeth Brunton, RN, MSN, OCN, started in the nursing field in 1973. More than 35 years later, she is the recipient of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Nurse Excellence Award. This award is presented annually to a registered nurse who goes above and beyond the normal standards of nursing practice.
“I really like taking care of patients. I like being a patient advocate, and I enjoy the teaching aspect of it,” said Burton in an interview with The Oncology Nurse. Brunton likes to help patients through the whole treatment process and knowing that she can make a difference in their life.
She also enjoys educating nurses and is a regular speaker at ASTRO nurse meetings as well as local Oncology Nursing Society events. For her presentation on mucositis at ASTRO’s annual meeting in 2005, Brunton received the highest evaluation ratings within ASTRO for that year.
Brunton received her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from the Uni versity of California, Los Angeles, and her Master of Science degree in nursing from Case Western Reserve University in Cleve land, Ohio. She is the lead nurse and primary nurse in the radiation oncology department at Scripps Clinic and Scripps Green Hospital in La Jolla, California, where she has worked since 1986.
In her daily role at her hospital, Brunton is responsible for assessing the physical, nutritional, and emotional needs of radiation therapy patients and assuring their optimal care. She also makes education a major part of her career. She worked across departments at Scripps to develop patient education materials on radiation therapy to help patients and their families better understand the life-saving treatment. In 2009, she also created a patient education orientation program for new patients. The course educates patients and their families about all aspects of radiation therapy, including physics, nursing, therapy, and simulation. Participants are asked to evaluate the course afterward, and the results are reported as part of Scripps’ quality improvement process.
Brunton also assists cancer patients during the transition from being in active treatment to survivorship. She initiated a procedure in the radiation oncology department to ensure that all patients receive information regarding their stage, pertinent test results, and specific information regarding their disease.
“The nice thing about radiation therapy is that there is a variety, because we treat everything from head to toe. We treat some patients for cure, and we treat some patients for palliation. We get to see them in follow-up over time, so it is very rewarding,” said Brunton. “You really get a chance to know the patients and their families. In a lot of specialties, you may see the patient once or twice, but in our specialty, we really get to know the patient.”
Part of the key to her success has been that she always tries to find the things at her job that she enjoys. These are the things she stays focused on when she has days when her job is very difficult. “I always try to step out of my box and try to learn new things,” she says
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