(Picture taken from San Servolo Island towards Venice)
I attended the ESO-EONS Masterclass in November last year (2024), along with about 30 other nurses from across Europe, as well as about 80 physicians. My aim is to share my experience with you, from start to finish, in order to promote this fantastic opportunity, to develop your cancer nursing career. This blog will discuss events before, during and after the event.
BEFORE:
Firstly, in May 2024, I attended the ECND in Turku, Finland, where I first learned about this masterclass event which occurs annually. The Masterclass aims to prepare cancer nurses for future senior roles and enhance their clinical knowledge in the management of the cancer patient during all phases of the cancer journey. I very quickly became interested in the prospect of a multi-disciplinary event, with nurses and physicians from all over Europe, and for this reason I submitted my application straight away. The application process was very simple and along with the application, I just needed to obtain a letter of support from my manager at work. Since the masterclass is a 3.5 day intensive residential conference, I needed to ensure a bit of time off work. However, the event also included a weekend, which meant I didn’t need to ask for a lot of time off. Two months after my application, I was informed that I was successful and the excitement started. Each attendee were asked to prepare a case study, of a situation in your place of practice, which may have left you with some questions you maybe needed help with to resolve. Although this possibly sounds like a bit of a challenge, I can assure you it really is not and if you need any help for ideas/examples of such case studies, I would be happy to assist anyone. These case studies were discussed in small groups of 5/6 nurses and it truly was one of the biggest highlights and learning opportunities of the event.
Traveling to San Servolo island was an experience in itself. I had never been to Venice in my life, so making use of boats to get around was completely new to me. My flight arrived to Marco Polo airport, from where I had to take a boat to Venice (this took about an hour, if I remember correctly) and from Venice, I took a smaller taxi boat to San Servolo Island. The organisers of the event, created a big What’s App group chat and this meant that people communicated on there about arrival times, etc. which meant that people were traveling together in groups, which made finding your way very easy. We all eventually made our way to San Servolo Island and very quickly made acquaintances on our way there. The hotel on the island is very basic, but it’s clean and safe and accommodation and food were provided throughout the event (my only expenses were my travel and spending money for exploring in Venice). The hotel actually used to be a psychiatric institution in the past. Make sure to take things like medication/first aid type things with you as other than the hotel, there is nothing else on this small island, but it is absolutely beautiful.
DURING:
We started each day with breakfast, followed by presentations from experts on various aspects of cancer nursing, but the focus was mainly on case study discussions and inter-professional workshops, with the physicians who were the participants of the ESO Masterclass in Clinical Oncology. We learned so much from each other, as each country seems to do things slightly differently and this allowed for great discussions and opportunities for sharing best practices. Coffee breaks, lunch and dinner were also provided and it was also here where we had the opportunity for international networking, including with the experts who presented at the Masterclass. We also had the opportunity to take the taxi boat to Venice a couple of times, where we explored the city and I particularly appreciated the beauty of this city, the people, food and drinks. My friends and I also enjoyed a hot drink and dessert at one of Europe’s oldest cafes, Caffè Florian in St Mark’s Square.
AFTER:
After 3.5 days of intensive masterclass and making new acquaintances and friends, it was time to leave. We had a fantastic time, we were even surprised with a live band and disco on the final evening, which was such great fun! I highly recommend attending this masterclass, as I truly felt it broadened my knowledge, my network and positively impacted on my clinical practice as a cancer nurse. I feel motivated and it gave me a great appreciation for the fantastic work we do as cancer nurses across Europe, as part of a multi-disciplinary team. I wish I could go again next year, but unfortunately, you are only allowed to participate once. So if this is something that sparks even the smallest of interest in you, apply to go next year. For more information click on this link
Carike Barnardo
Cancer Nurse, Royal Marsden Hospital, UK.