Pediatric Oncology Nurse Hannah McCullough Comes Full Circle

by Renee Hewitt | Nov 15, 2023 | Blog, News, Nurse of the Week | 0 comments

At the age of 10, Hannah McCullough, BSN, got a glimpse of her dream job as a pediatric oncology nurse.

As a child, she spent hours caring for her brother at his bedside at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital following a brain cancer diagnosis and being amazed by how the nurses took time out of their day to spend time with him. McCullough recalls how they focused on him as a whole person, which she found special.

When Matthew passed away, McCullough became even more committed to becoming a nurse.

She was a nursing assistant at Stanford Health Care for adults with cancer. Then, she transferred to Packard Children’s and worked as a nursing assistant in the Pediatric Transplant Center.

Hannah is now 25 and in her dream job as a pediatric hematology-oncology and stem cell transplant nurse at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health, and a nurse on the same unit that cared for her brother years ago.

Daily Nurse honors Hannah McCullough as the Nurse of the Week for turning a tragic moment into something positive and making her journey into nursing in honor of her brother. McCullough is a dedicated and compassionate nurse who ensures that patients and families are heard, feel loved and welcomed, and focuses on holistic care – which is what she admired so much as a child.

What follows is our interview with McCullough, edited for length and clarity.