Marie-Reine G. Byron, APRN

Marie-Reine earned her Doctorate in Nursing Practice from Sacred Heart University School of Nursing’s Family Nurse Practitioner program in 2021, and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Grand Canyon University in 2017. She is certified as a Family Nurse Practitioner through the American Nurses Credentialing Center Certification Program.

Her experiences working in Oncology and Hospice provided a smooth transition into palliative care. She found working with the terminally ill patient population especially rewarding. She was greatly impressed with the overall philosophy of hospice care and its patient/family-centered focus. She felt drawn to palliative care and made the conscious decision to spend the rest of her career as a palliative care advanced practice nurse. She makes it a priority to have goals of care discussions with her patients and families to ensure their treatment choices reflect their wishes.

Marie-Reine enjoys spending time with her family and working tirelessly with her not-for-profit organization which helps to provide free medical care to children in the poor communities of Haiti.

Why should someone choose you to care for their health?
I will do my best to ensure that my care focuses on providing quality compassionate care for my patients. They are already facing life-limiting illnesses, I must assist them with medical care, pain management and emotional/spiritual support, expressly tailored to their unique needs and wishes.

What is the most important thing your patients should expect from their professional relationship with you? What do you expect from them?
I want my patients to know that Palliative care is a unique discipline that is provided in an interdisciplinary manner utilizing a team approach; thus, I will be working in collaboration with other palliative team members including physicians, social workers, chaplains, pharmacists and so on. It takes a team to deliver optimal palliative care addressing patients’ and families’ physical, social, spiritual and emotional needs.

How do you spend your valuable personal time when you’re not caring for patients?
I work closely with US2GETHER, a non-profit organization where everyone is working for the advancement and the creation of opportunities for underprivileged Haitian children. Together we work to improve the health and the life of one poor Haitian child at a time.

Why did you choose your specialty and what is its greatest reward?
Working in this field makes me feel that I actually receive much more back from my patients than I actually give! Assisting patients and their families in meeting their goals and focusing on quality of life gives me a significant sense of accomplishment with immediate positive feedback. It is also very rewarding to know that in this field, you are never alone. It is a strong, cohesive team with a shared mission.