News

Fox Chase Cancer Center Palliative Care Nurse Receives Lane Adams Quality of Life Award

PHILADELPHIA (June 9, 2005) -- The American Cancer Society (ACS) has awarded Bernadette "Bunny" Dugan, RN, CHPN, palliative care nurse at Fox Chase Cancer Center, with the Lane Adams Quality of Life Award. This award recognizes exemplary individuals who provide compassionate and skilled cancer care to patients and their families.

Bernadette "Bunny" Dugan, RN, CHPN

"Dugan combines calming reassurance with emergency room efficiency in her delivery of compassionate palliative care to patients from all walks of life," explained Michael Levy, MD, PhD, founder and medical director of Palliative Care Services at Fox Chase, in a nomination letter for Dugan in 2001. "She is a champion for the potential for growth at the end of life and consistently demonstrates that there can be healing in the presence of progressive disease and death."

Dugan also servers as a pain resource nurse (PRN), assists in the training of hospice volunteers and presents bi-annually at the Hospice Care course at Fox Chase. Outside of work, Dugan incorporates the same dedication to every aspect of her life. She serves as a nurse for her Parish in Port Richmond, Pa. and is a speaker for Pennsylvanian's for Human Life (PHL).

"In more than twenty years of clinical practice, I have never seen such compassion, professionalism and genuine concern," said Rhoda Goldstein, MA, MSW, LSW, clinical social worker at Fox Chase. "Dugan truly enables families to maximize their dignity, quality of life, and personal will at a time when those things are so important, yet, so difficult to achieve."