My Project: For my STEP Project, I spent the semester conduction psycho-oncology research with Dr. Cynthia Gerhardt at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. The project I worked on investigates benefit finding in children with advanced cancer and also looks at the correlations between parent and child benefit finding. Benefit finding is the idea that individuals can see positive outcomes from negative life events. I assisted with literature review, writing the research paper, data analysis, and data organization.
Transformations: Pediatric cancer survival rates are very high, but many of the children in my study will most likely die from cancer. Most people might think that children and their parents in this position would not want to participate in a research project near the end of their life, but it is quite the opposite. Nearly 80% of all participants recruited agreed to be in the study because they knew how important it was to improve care for children and families with cancer diagnoses. This research project helped correct my assumptions about how people want to spend their time before death.
Experiences: One of the most impactful experiences that has led me to shift my view on research near death is from my time transcribing interviews. Hearing their stories and how their cancer diagnosis has had a tremendous impact on the way I view children with advanced cancer. The interviews involve questions about decision making regarding their health care, how they share information with their friends and family, and what they have learned from the experience. I have heard heart-wrenching stories from many study participants, but the majority of them find something positive about their experience.
From these stories, I have come to understand how important it is to do research in patients close to death. There is room for improvement in the understanding and care of these individuals and the treatment they receive. There are very few research studies that are conducted on the end of life of pediatric cancer patients, and further exploration of this life event. This research would improve the quality of life for the patient and family in the time that they do have left.
These realizations have filled me with more energy to continue conducting research in pediatric cancer patients. I plan on applying for a pediatric clinical psychology program after a year or two of working as a research assistant. My career goal is to be a clinician and researcher to help young people with chronic and terminal illnesses.
Significance: This STEP project has also transformed the way that I want to proceed as a student researcher in the future. My research project interests me and I continue to have more questions about how significant changes in health can affect the psychology of children in both good and bad ways. I was able to secure a job with my P.I. this semester because of my dedication to her lab. I will continue exploring my interest in psycho-oncology through this position and in the future through a Ph.D. program as well. Dr. Gerhardt is a valuable mentor and continues to guide me towards my career goals and connect me with other potential mentors. I am grateful for this experience and having the financial support of the STEP program.
My first day as a paid research assistant!