From Caregiver to Patient: A Team Member’s Cancer Journey at AdventHealth Palm Coast

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  • Michelle Bartlome
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Tricia Mathis is used to guiding patients through the intricacies of health care every day at AdventHealth Palm Coast. But, when the senior nursing manager found out she had breast cancer in January, her journey took an unexpected turn as she became the patient.

As Mathis navigated the challenges of treatment and recovery, her colleagues rallied around her. “Before I knew it, they had a plan,” she said.

They covered shifts and helped lead her team of more than 70 nurses, made bracelets and ribbons in Mathis' honor, and even visited the hospital on their day off to cheer her on at the beside before her surgery.

“It’s hard, especially the day that she got out of surgery and to see her in the bed and in that position,” said Chantell Sandy, assistant nurse manager at AdventHealth Palm Coast. “She is the one that’s always there for us, and now she is the patient in the bed, and we get to be the ones who are there for her.”

For Mathis, the support from her nursing colleagues was a source of solace and strength.

“It was overwhelming to have that kind of support,” she said.

While Mathis is still in the midst of her cancer journey and undergoing chemotherapy, she is thankful for her team and caregivers. Her story is one of empathy and compassion and a true example of the human spirit.

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