Helping guide women through the process after they have been diagnosed with breast cancer, nurse navigators can be a calm in time of emotional storm.Nurse navigators are nurses who help patients through the often-challenging healthcare system by coordinating doctor’s appointments, scheduling exams, providing education, and offering assistance to overcome issues such as insurance, transportation, and language barriers.“It is difficult because each patient’s needs are so different because personalities differ,” said Amy Ellis, breast health nurse navigator for Cookeville Regional Medical Center. “I have learned to ask each patient, ‘What can I do for you right now?’” It’s a step-by-step, day-by-day process.”Ellis began working at Cookeville Regional Medical Center in 2003 in patient registration. After graduating with a BSN from Tennessee Tech in 2005, she began her career in the ICU, where she stayed until 2012.