New Nursing Director Spearheads Pediatric Research

Traditionally, the role of nurses has been to provide bedside care to patients; however, at Texas Children’s Hospital, nurses are taking on many less-traditional responsibilities, including major nursing research projects.

Marilyn Hockenberry, Ph.D., director of pediatric nurse practitioners at Texas Children’s Cancer Center and Hematology Service, spearheads research projects among the nursing staff at Texas Children’s Hospital. She recently accepted the position as director for the new Center for Clinical Research at Texas Children’s.

“Nursing research is directly related to improving patient care and outcomes,” said Hockenberry, who also is a professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. “Our projects are clinically based and their findings can ultimately impact and improve daily life for sick children.”

Because many nurses come into the field without research experience, Hockenberry created a scholarship program to mentor nurses, providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in research projects. The program has 18 nurses from many specialties throughout Texas Children’s who will spend the next year learning the research process. In addition to the scholarship program, four nursing research fellows have been selected at Texas Children’s to work with Hockenberry and the staff of the Center for Clinical Research during the next two years.

“Nurses spend a great deal of time with patients at the bedside, so they are in the perfect position to incorporate their research findings into daily practices,” she said.

Hockenberry’s research projects have included extensive studies on aspects of pediatric cancer, such as pain management, end-of-life care and surviving cancer.

Co-written by Hockenberry and several of her cancer center colleagues, the information compiled from these studies provides health care professionals with helpful resources in understanding pediatric cancer.

“Many health care professionals caring for children with cancer may be experts in the care of adults but have limited experience in the care of children,” Hockenberry said. “We understand and can address the unique needs of children.”

In addition to her research projects, Hockenberry is editor of three books: “Nursing Care of Infants and Children,” “Essentials of Pediatric Nursing,” and “Wong’s Clinical Nursing Manual.”

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