Relationships, technology and compassion. This triumvirate of distant cousins is making headlines in the world of specialized cancer care, and here’s why: it’s called the Primary Nursing Care Model. The new James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute has already garnered attention as a 21st century, state-of-the-art cancer hospital, with each inpatient floor addressing a specific type of cancer. It’s sub-specialized care on every inpatient floor, at every turn — including nursing. Here, all patients will have their own specialized oncology nurse who will build a relationship with them while also serving as their primary coordinator for individualized care with the teams of medical oncologists, surgical oncologists, pathologists, radiation oncologists, pharmacists, genomics experts and more. Brenda Kendall, RN, BSN, MS, CNOR, administrator of Clinical Operations & Surgical Services, firmly believes each patient will benefit markedly from this focused, specialized care. “When a patient builds a relationship with a nurse and can have meaningful conversations, he feels much more comfortable,” she says. “Plus you have one primary set of eyes as the main coordinator for the entire care team. That’s in the very best interest of that patient.” Add to that the technology factor, and patients will see even more immediate specialized care. Each oncology nurse carries a hand-held electronic device so that when a patient pushes his call button, the call goes directly to his nurse rather than just to a nurses’ station. The nurse receives the message instantly, in real-time, enabling a more rapid response. “This is so exciting,” Kendall says. “The new James houses technological advances that will have a lasting and immediate impact on cancer care delivery. But beyond that — in addition to the technology, the world-renowned specialists and sub-specialists, the state-of-the-art facility — what we’re really doing is what we’ve always strived to do: provide hope for our patients.”