Name: Shelly Fukuyama
Age: 34
Position: Registered Nurse
Education: University of Hawaii
Pastimes: Spending time with sons.

"I try not to dwell on the negativism, try not to be a depressing person to be around," Fukuyama said.

"Coming to the hospital is intimidating for a lot of people. It's made your day just to have somebody smile."

Fukuyama's care-giving manner is part of the reason she was chosen as this year's Queen's Medical Center Cancer Institute's Employee of the Year.

Chris Fukumoto, manager of outpatient oncology said, "Whether they're oncology patients or any of the other patients that come through here, she has a genuine concern for them."

Among other things, Fukuyama helped plan a nutrition fair for the undernourished while they deal with cancer and undergo cancer treatment.

She helped plan and lectured for "Cancer Treatments and You," informational sessions open to the public on topics such as understanding blood counts, hair loss and intimacy.

"We teach a lot of our patients but we're also concerned about other people not being serviced here," she said. "We try to provide as much community education as possible."

In addition to her participation in various programs, she also helps her patients set goals that may help them not dwell on the side effects of what may happen and look forward to the end of their treatment.

"Being able to educate patients about the treatment and just helping them understand what they're going through so they can get through treatment and have a better quality of life - that's so rewarding," Fukuyama said.