Nurse Navigators Help Families Find Their Way

The family arrives unsure, eyes scanning for direction. Their movements feel robotic. 

Check-in at Registration. 

Take a seat. 

Wait.   

They shuffle their feet and scroll through their phones, surrounded by uncertainty. This space is unfamiliar. Each person is a stranger.  

For many patients and families, walking through the doors at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is the start of a journey filled with questions and fear. They hope to find someone who can help them with it all; someone who will walk alongside them so they do not feel alone. 

They hear their name called and see a smiling face approaching. Help is here. 

Now you see them 

At St. Jude, where care is rooted in compassion and innovation, patients and families find their first lifeline in the nurse navigators.  

A nurse navigator is a registered nurse who plays a specialized role in guiding patients through the complex health care system. At St. Jude, they are often the first nurses to meet the families, introducing them to the hospital and helping them navigate systems and processes. 

“Families come in so overwhelmed,” said Dana O’Neill, RN, a nurse navigator in Clinical Logistics. “We try to make things as easy for them as we can.”  

The nurse navigators first introduce themselves. This lets families know that, if the patient or family has any needs or questions, the nurse navigator can help.  

“If patients are in pain, sick, nauseated or vomiting, we notify the clinic first and go from there,” said team member Jeanna Davidson, RN. “If they’re feeling OK, we start the education process.” 

That begins with an introduction to the St. Jude MyChart app. This app gives patients and caregivers secure, online access to medical records, schedules, test results and communication tools to actively participate in care and also connect with the St. Jude health care team.  

The nurse navigator will also show patients how to use the Our St. Jude patient app. This app provides patients and families with personalized, real-time updates on appointments, campus navigation, care team information and essential resources to help them manage their journey and reduce stress during treatment.  

Next, families are on the move. For some, this means a tour of campus. For others, this means getting to their first appointment. 

During this time, the nurse navigator will answer questions, calm fears and help families make informed decisions.  

Now you don’t 

While patients are in the clinic, depending on the day’s schedule, the nurse navigator may begin working with another family or may return to her office to make sure everything is running smoothly. This includes care coordination. Nurse navigators may schedule tests and appointments, collaborating with various care teams to reduce delays. 

Sometimes families have gaps in their schedules. When this happens, nurse navigators help adjust appointments to reduce wait times. 

As the patient’s appointment comes to an end, the nurse navigator heads back to walk with them through the next steps. This may include appointments, visits to Kay Kafe or help getting to housing.  

Visible support, invisible strength 

A team of just four individuals, nurse navigators may work with 10–20 patients and families each day. They have worked with more than 600 patients so far this year, each representing a unique story of resilience. The nurse navigators’ efforts during those critical first days help families feel less overwhelmed and more prepared to engage with their care.  

Nurse navigators work with patients and families for the first few days of their St. Jude journey. They check in with patients and families to make sure they are finding their way around campus. The nurse navigator will ask if patients and families have any questions or needs.  

They offer compassionate, personalized care as a consistent point of contact for new families. They help families overcome challenges like transportation, language and health literacy. A nurse navigator improves patient satisfaction, reduces treatment delays and eases the overwhelming parts of care by being a “go-to” person families can rely on.  

As patients and families grow more comfortable with St. Jude, their care shifts from nurse navigators to nursing care coordinators. The coordinators will continue to support families for the remainder of their time at St. Jude.  

“I get to be the first person there to help patients and families settle in and take those first few deep breaths,” Shelby Steinman, RN, said. “That’s really special.”