Year: 2018
Type: article
Abstract: Dr Jimmie Holland was a major force within the field of psycho-oncology and aptly named the “mother” of our field. In fact, during her webinar for the American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS) on May 16, 2017, she described herself as the “oldest living psycho-oncologist.” Her death on December 24, 2017, took many of us by surprise, given her continued and recent professional activity within the field in general, and at Memorial Sloan Kettering. So many of us have been influenced by Dr Holland throughout our careers. Our goal is to highlight a few of Dr Holland's major achievements in psycho-oncology and her legacy within APOS. Dr Holland became interested in the psychological experiences of cancer patients, in large part because of conversations with her husband, James Holland, a medical oncologist. She noted that during the 1970s, more and more patients were being informed that they had cancer (a change from earlier practice), being treated for cancer, and surviving cancer. One of her favorite stories involved taking a cab to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center during the 1970s, and the cab driver did not want to drop her off there because of the taboo regarding cancer. As a psychiatrist, Dr Holland became curious about how cancer patients were coping with their cancer and how clinicians—from multidisciplinary backgrounds—could aid in minimizing patient distress. Furthermore, she was interested to know about the impact of distress on cancer care and its outcomes on treatment. In 1977, Dr Holland joined the psychiatry service at Memorial Sloan Kettering hospital, where she eventually developed the psycho-oncology service. This was the first full-time service of its kind in a cancer center. Dr Holland noted that there were many hurdles for providing any type of psychosocial care to cancer patients or to attempt to do research in this population. The main struggles included the lack of validated screening tools, the view that psychosocial care was not important, and continued stigma regarding the topic of cancer specifically, as well as attention to psychological health in general. However, as society began to talk more about cancer, the impact of stress on cancer was acknowledged. Dr Holland grew the nascent field of psycho-oncology. In 1984, she founded the International Psycho-Oncology Society. In 1980, she founded the American Society of Psychosocial and Behavioral Oncology/AIDS. This organization evolved into APOS in 1986, with Dr Holland as the inaugural president. She edited the first textbook in psycho-oncology (The Handbook of Psycho-Oncology) in 1989. She also established the first peer-reviewed journal in the field, Psycho-Oncology, in 1992 and served as co-editor with Maggie Watson until her death. Dr Holland led the first Distress Management panel of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network in 1997 and shepherded the first guidelines in Distress Management, produced by the panel in 1999. She was also a member of the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Psychosocial Services to Cancer Patients/Families in a Community Setting—the team that produced the landmark report “Cancer Care for the Whole Patient: Meeting Psychosocial Health Needs” in 2008. I … was inspired by her dedication and laser-like focus on understanding and addressing the psychological dimensions of cancer. She opened so many doors for me that went way beyond the traditional roles of a mental health professional as a clinician and researcher. I learned what it takes to build a program like the one I found at Sloan Kettering and how you can extend your influence by working through professional organizations and building trust and relationships across professional disciplines. However, her impact on the world of medicine extended beyond psychosocial oncology. She championed the idea of interdisciplinary teamwork in both clinical care and research. Dr Holland enthusiastically worked with clinicians and researchers from many different backgrounds and served as a mentor to many. In addition, she was often outspoken on the issue of funding for psycho-oncology programs and strongly advocated for more equitable insurance coverage of these services. Jimmie was an extraordinary mentor to me, and countless others. She was actively engaged and involved not only in mentoring me as an APOS President, but in my broader career as well. Jimmie advocated for the field of psycho-oncology, for every professional organization and society that she had a passion for, for the careers of individual professionals in the arena of psycho-oncology, and for her patients. At each level she was fully engaged and involved literally until her last days. I admired her greatly for her passion, spark, determination, fortitude, and energy. Dr Holland was passionate about meeting and talking with people from all over the world who were interested in the field of psycho-oncology. She would make time to email, talk on the phone, and meet up at conferences. Her family asked that a tribute fund be established at APOS to fund international travel to APOS conferences for psychosocial oncology professional in developing countries. Jimmie Holland was an amazing person who accomplished a tremendous amount both personally and professionally. She inspired many, from patients to clinicians to researchers. Jimmie leaves a legacy that will influence generations to come. We will certainly miss her.
Source: Psycho-Oncology
DOI: 10.1002/pon.4701
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2800758873