New Program Helps Families, Cancer Patients

MURRAY, UT (9/23/2009) – Steering patients through the vast amount of cancer information and patient services has been made easier due to a new partnership between Intermountain Medical Center and the American Cancer Society.

Cancer Resource Center volunteers, in partnership with the staff at the cancer education center at Intermountain Medical Center, will help cancer patients and their families get well, stay well, find cures, and fight back against cancer by offering free up-to-date personalized information, support, and resource referrals to cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers during all stages of the cancer experience.
 
Another important piece of the partnership is the American Cancer Society’s patient navigator. The patient navigator is someone who connects patients and families with important cancer education and resources. The patient navigator program helps patients, families, and caregivers navigate the many systems needed during the cancer journey. Trained patient navigators link those dealing with cancer to needed programs and resources.

Patient navigators also help patients:

• By providing literature on coping with cancer, what to expect during chemotherapy and radiation, and dealing with side effects of treatment.
• By connecting patients and their families to support groups, classes, and other programs for information and support.
• By helping patients identify resources for financial assistance, medication needs, home health care, insurance questions, transportation, and other concerns.
• By listening, caring, and helping patients and families in their time of need.
• By identifying activities and programs that can help ensure a better quality of life.
• By helping cancer survivors learn to self-navigate.

The patient navigator program is a collaborative program between the American Cancer Society and Intermountain Medical Center. This community-based partnership allows outreach to those most in need during the cancer experience.
 
“The current partnership with the American Cancer Society’s Patient Navigator in the Jon and Karen Huntsman Cancer Center has been very successful,” says David Grauer, administrator at Intermountain Medical Center. “The combination of the patient navigator and the Cancer Resource Center volunteers will increase patient access to cancer services within Intermountain Healthcare and the community.”
 
For more information about the partnership between the American Cancer Society and the Jon and Karen Huntsman Cancer Center at Intermountain Medical Center, please call 801.507.3800.