Join two parents, along with their care teams, as they share their families’ personal cancer journeys and the impact Satellite care had on their children’s treatments. Although their stories are similar, each family and team will give their personal insights into the care process and the role of POGO Satellite Clinics. Panelists will participate in a moderated discussion and then be available to take your questions.
Speakers:
- Moderator: Vicky Breakey, BSc, MEd, FRCPC,
Associate Professor,
Department of Pediatrics,
McMaster University
Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist,
McMaster Children’s Hospital, Hamilton Health SciencesDr. Vicky Breakey is Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist at McMaster Children’s Hospital and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. She is a passionate provider of clinical care to children with cancer and serious blood disorders and is an avid teacher of medical students and residents in pediatrics. Her current research interests focus on helping to empower adolescents and prepare them for transition to adult care through the development of online education and self-management programs.
- Peter Bender, Parent Representative
The Benders are a family of five, including a dog, and two sons, aged eight and six. As a family, they enjoy camping, baseball, curling, swimming, biking, and geocaching. In November 2015, their youngest of two children was admitted to Children’s Hospital in London and was diagnosed with ALL three weeks after his third birthday. The treatment lasted three years and two months and monitoring is ongoing. Their tertiary health care facility is still Children’s Hospital and their POGO Satellite Clinic is at Grand River Hospital in Kitchener. The Benders appreciate all the support received along their journey and felt that participating in POGO’s Satellite Education Day was a good way to give something back and improve the experience for families in the future.
- Tanya Hobson, RN, BScN, BScBiomed, CVAA(c), CONC(c),
POGO Pediatric Oncology Satellite Clinic Nurse,
Northeast Cancer Centre, Health Sciences NorthA biologist first, Tanya Hobson completed her education to be a registered nurse at the University of Toronto. Her passion for pediatrics led to a career start in ntensive care at The Hospital for Sick Children. After 10 years there, Tanya transitioned into pediatric oncology at the POGO Satellite Clinic in Sudbury.
- Kelly Mahon, Parent Representative
Kelly Mahon is a 36-year-old mother of two boys. The family lives in Kapuskasing, Ontario, where she has been working in the restaurant industry for 21 years and is currently the General Manager of O’Briens Grill. Her youngest son, Colton, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2015 when he was two and a half years old. Colton underwent just over three years of treatment between Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa and the POGO Satellite Clinic at Health Sciences North in Sudbury. Colton is currently off treatment and has been chemo-free for one year. When approached to be part of Satellite Education Day, Kelly was hesitant and nervous to take part in such an important event, but has received so much help and guidance through POGO services, as well as from the family’s tertiary and satellite teams, she felt it was important to offer her feedback as well.
- Diana Masse, BScN,
Nurse Case Manager,
Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences CentreDiana Masse is Nurse Case Manager with the Pediatric Oncology Program at Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences Centre. She graduated nursing from Western University in 2007, and began her career working in inpatient pediatrics. She received APHON certification in 2009. Diana transitioned into her current nurse case manager role in 2014, and her career has since been focused solely on caring for children with cancer and their families. She has previously served on the steering committee of the POGO Symposium.
- Cristina Peter, BScN, CPHON,
POGO Satellite Nurse Coordinator and Resource Nurse for Children’s Outpatient Clinic,
Grand River HospitalCristina graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 2003 and went on to work at Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences Centre in the Hematology/Oncology Inpatient Unit for approximately two years. It is here that she fell in love with the field of pediatric oncology, its rewards and challenges. In 2005, Cristina and her family relocated to her hometown of Kitchener-Waterloo. She worked for two years in an adult cardiac care unit, but soon realized that pediatrics was her true passion. In 2010, she joined the POGO Satellite Clinic at Grand River Hospital and returned to her love of pediatric oncology. In 2015, Cristina completed her CPHON certification and in 2018 assumed the role of POGO Satellite Nurse Coordinator at Grand River Hospital.
- Graham Robinson, RN, BScN,
Oncology Case Manager/POGO Satellite Coordinator,
Children’s Hospital of Eastern OntarioGraham Robinson graduated from the nursing baccalaureate program at the University of Ottawa in May 2006 and has worked at CHEO ever since. During this time, he has held various nursing roles within the Division of Oncology, from staff RN, care facilitator, to case manager. His most recent role is POGO Satellite Coordinator which has given him the opportunity to work closely with his colleagues in the POGO Satellite Clinic in Sudbury.