Healing in color: Purdue nursing alumnus brings joy to pediatric cancer patients through personalized window art

Written By: Rebecca Hoffa, rhoffa@purdue.edu

James Shepard draws art on his patients’ windows, even bringing out his Boilermaker spirit for Purdue-related artwork.(Photo provided)

From Bluey to sports team logos, superheroes to Disney princesses, James Shepard, a 2024 Purdue University School of Nursing alumnus and oncology nurse at Riley Children’s Health, has drawn them all on various patients’ windows throughout his floor.  Shepard is a nurse first and foremost, but despite no formal art training, he picks up window markers during his night shifts, spreading joy throughout the oncology unit by drawing some of the children’s favorite things on their windows.

James Shepard(Photo provided)

For Shepard, who loves the connections he makes with his patients to make some of the worst days of their lives a little easier, the most rewarding thing about being an oncology nurse is being able to guide patients and their families through their diagnoses and treatments over the weeks and months they spend in the hospital.

“I love the longevity of our patient care,” Shepard said. “Some of our kids stay for months. That’s pretty rare, but a couple of weeks is pretty common. Then, they go home and come back for another couple of weeks. All these kids on our floor, I get to know them really well, and I get to know their families really well. I get to have this long-term relationship with them that I really value. They know me, and I know them. I think that is so special.”

Shepard sees googling character images and sports team logos and drawing the images outside of his patients’ rooms as part of that relationship-building. However, this hobby wasn’t something he set out to pursue but rather something serendipitous.

“There was one shift around Halloween last year where somebody had left this cup of window markers out at the nursing station,” Shepard recalled. “We don’t know where they came from, but there was one little girl who loved Bluey, and she was going through some rough treatment. I was just messing around with the markers, and I drew Bluey on her door. And then after that, parents were walking around, and they see this big Bluey on the door, and they’re like, ‘Where did this come from?’ So, I started getting requests from patients and their parents. Ultimately, I ended up buying my own markers. Now all my patients know it’s me. Every night I come in, I have a whole bunch of requests lined up, and I try and do as many as I can.”

Shepard said because he’s working the night shift at the hospital, he often doesn’t see his patients’ faces light up when they see the artwork, but he noted one parent’s reaction in particular stands out in his mind.

“I did the kid’s favorite sports team on his door — their logo or something,” Shepard said. “His mom said something I had never thought about. She told me they have a lot of different providers from different specialties who come to see them throughout the day. It’s a lot of people they’ve never seen before. But every time these new doctors walk in the room, they start talking about the football team or character. That mom said it’s the best way for these random people to come in and just immediately have this connection and start up a casual conversation. It’s scary when you’re always having these random people come in, and I had never even thought about that.”

Shepard’s artwork has ranged across everything from astronauts to cartoon characters. (Photo provided)

The medical field was always Shepard’s career focus, but he loved the patient-centered nature of nursing. When he was exploring college options, he was quickly drawn to Purdue’s College of Health and Human Sciences, where he made valuable connections that shaped his nursing journey.

“I have pretty much always known I was going to be a nurse or something medical-related,” Shepard said. “When I was looking for places to go to college, I was really looking for places that had a good nursing program. I really loved Purdue’s nursing program in particular because of the direct-admit process as opposed to two years of pre-nursing and then having to apply to nursing school. I really liked what Purdue had to offer, and pediatrics was always my specialty of choice, so I was pretty excited when like I found out my clinicals were at Riley.”

While Shepard always saw himself working with children, he never anticipated being on an oncology floor. During his clinicals, he assumed his oncology rotation would be a day to get through rather than savor.

“I called my professor after that experience, and I was like, ‘I don’t know how, but you have to send me back here at least one more time. This is what I want to do,’” Shepard said. “After that, I reached out to the manager on the unit, and she made a spot for me. This is where I need to be.”

During his time at Riley, Shepard has received three DAISY Awards — an international award program that celebrates clinical skills and compassionate care from nurses. Whether through bedside care, discussions with families or creating artwork that elicits smiles, being able to offer emotional support for his patients keeps Shepard motivated.

“The first time they get chemo or when they first get diagnosed, in both instances, it’s a whirlwind of emotions, and it’s a lot of questions,” Shepard said. “I pride myself on being good about sitting down, answering their questions and making them feel more comfortable. I think being in that position for somebody as their world is being flipped upside down is one of my favorite things. I really love talking with families who have no idea what’s going on and being able to have conversations about what we’re doing, why we’re doing it and what we’re going to do next because it’s a lot.”