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Christina Ketchum has been at UAMS since 2014.
Image by Evan Lewis
Nurse Inspired to Serve by Memory of Grandparent’s Health Struggles
| Christina Ketchum, MSN, clinical services manager for myeloma stem cell transplants at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), cites a childhood memory as her inspiration to become a nurse.
“My grandfather was at home on hospice care,” Ketchum said. “I was in fourth or fifth grade at the time and didn’t fully understand everything. I remember the relief on my grandmother’s face any time the nurse came in to help her take care of my grandfather. When I got older and recalled how that person made my grandmother feel, I knew I wanted to be that for someone.”
A native of Helena-West Helena, Arkansas, Ketchum received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and her master’s degree from Benedictine University in Illinois. She has been at UAMS since 2014.
Ketchum explained the various scenarios where a patient might be admitted to hospital as part of the stem cell transplant process.
“Some may be a direct admission prior to the planned treatment. A patient may be newly diagnosed with myeloma and need a workup,” she said. “We also get patients who may have started their treatment as an outpatient but now need 24-hour care.”
Ketchum expressed her gratitude for her UAMS team and the patients they serve.
“Even on the hard days, I come back for the patients and the people I work for. I grew up on this floor — I was 23 when I came here. It really feels like a family.”