Ashley Appointed Program Manager, DCBSM

Natalie Ashley, patient navigator with the Duke Center for Brain and Spine Metastasis, has been promoted to the position of program manager at the center. Her first official day in her new role is today, Monday, January 13.

Natalie joined Duke and the center in January 2018. Most recently she served as clinical nurse coordinator for Lung Cancer and Neuro-Oncology (2015-2017), project officer (2014-2015), and Community Palliative Care Nurse Coordinator (2014) — all with Barwon Health in Geelong, Australia. She has a Graduate Diploma in Advanced Nursing (Cancer and Palliative Care) and a Bachelor of Nursing (RN) degree from LaTrobe University, Melbourne, Australia, and is a member of the Oncology Nursing Society.

As a patient navigator with the Duke Center for Brain and Spine Metastasis, Natalie was tasked with ensuring continuity of care across disciplines — coordinating patient care between multiple cancer-related disciplines including (but not limited to) medical oncology, radiation oncology, neurosurgery and palliative care. She gained a strong understanding of the daily needs of our patients and their loved ones and how to guide them through the complex cancer care system — from addressing barriers to access, to providing emotional support, to ensuring timely access to brain and spine metastasis treatment.

"Natalie has been instrumental in establishing the center and growing the program," said center director Peter Fecci, MD, PhD. "We are excited to have her step up into the program manager role where she will help us advance our center’s mission, from strategic planning to systems development to patient advocacy."