Misty Schoenthal Where Science Becomes Hope® Spotlight

Misty Schoenthal is a patient advocate for Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University and has been with Winship for almost four years.

In her role, Misty helps patients navigate various situations or challenges that may require the assistance of an additional person to help resolve. As Misty explains her job, “The patient advocate role takes a little bit more of a soft, touchy-feely approach. We help patients with some emotional things that they may be experiencing that fall outside the scope of social work. We may help mediate issues within the clinics. For example, if the patients don't understand what’s being told to them, patient advocates can provide additional clarification.”

What are some ways that your work at Winship inspires hope?

“It’s in the moments that we hear back from the patients that we’ve resolved an issue, we took something off their plate, we relieved some stress off their shoulders. When we know that a patient got what they needed, whether it was a medication, or it was just communication, or it was anything that they needed…When the patient feels that they were heard, and that the needed changes were made, or they understand better… then they can continue to move forward in their care with trust – that's what I'm looking for.”

What does “Where Science Becomes Hope” mean to you?

Everyone working together to help patients to progress, heal and improve is what means the most to Misty. “The support team surrounding the oncologists and the researchers is just as important to making sure that our center is running smoothly, so that our care teams and researchers are able to do what they do best. Our operations team, our housekeeping team, from bottom to top in our center, there is somebody doing something that makes sure that everybody can focus on the patients and make sure that we see as many people as we can in a safe environment, so that everybody’s getting enough time, and we’re able to help more people. If that doesn’t equal hope, I don’t know what does.”

“‘Where Science Becomes Hope’ is when you are changing somebody’s life for the better. And that’s personally and professionally. I want to share a positive moment in somebody’s life; I want to leave each situation and each person better and make a positive impact.”

“I think the first thing that comes to a person’s mind when they are diagnosed with cancer is ‘how much time do I have?’ And science equals time.”