Back
Welcome to
Together is a new resource for anyone affected by pediatric cancer - patients and their parents, family members, and friends.
Learn MoreWhen your child is diagnosed with cancer, it’s as if the whole family has been diagnosed with cancer. While your child is being treated, your pediatric oncology social worker can be a lifeline.
Social workers can help your family deal with the emotional issues surrounding cancer treatment and the practical matters of day-to-day life. A social worker is part of your child’s cancer care team and, at many centers, will likely be one of the first people you meet. If for some reason you haven’t met your social worker after the first few days of treatment, please ask a member of your child’s care team to connect your family to the social work department.
Social workers can assist from the time you first learn of your child’s cancer through the end of treatment and beyond. After a child’s diagnosis, the family will never be the same, and social workers can work with your family to create and maintain a “new normal” way of life. Your child’s social worker assesses your family’s needs and develops a plan to support them.
Every hospital is different, but social workers may assist patient families with how to
Pediatric oncology social workers play an essential role in cancer treatment.
Social workers can assist from the time you first learn of your child's cancer through the end of treatment and beyond.
“What do social workers…do?”
St. Jude Social Work Director Erica Sirrine shares a few things she has learned over the past 20+ years of being a social worker.
“You are the amazing heroes in my story and the stories of so many other social workers. You are our "why."
—
Reviewed: April 2022