Last Wednesday, patients at the Sandra and Malcolm Berman Cancer Institute at Crossroads were given cupcakes by the owners of Saffer Plumbing, Heating, and Electric. This special treat was to commemorate Breast Cancer Awareness Month and was well received by our patients and staff. And, the company’s generosity doesn’t end there!
Under this new partnership, Saffer will donate about $5,000 a year to GBMC. The Saffer family chose GBMC because of close connections that include the hospital being the place where their children were born, and they have a family member who was a longtime physician at GBMC.
Brandon Costantino, manager of our Oncology Support Program at GBMC’s Sandra and Malcolm Berman Cancer Institute, recently answered some questions regarding this wonderful collaboration and its importance to our cancer patients.
Q: Can you give some details about our Oncology support program and how it helps our patients?
A: Our Oncology Support Services department provides a wide variety of assistance including helping our patients get to and from their treatments. We also offer free counseling, education, and connections to organizations that can help patients and families shoulder the burden of treatment. Our goal is to reduce barriers to care. We want patients to be able to get their treatments on time, as scheduled, to achieve the best health outcomes possible.
Q: What is the average cost for our patients who turn to public transportation or rideshare companies to get to their appointments? How will this partnership help our cancer patients meet some of their transportation costs for coming to and from scheduled treatments?
A: Some of our patients turn to public transportation or rideshare companies to get to and from their treatments. The average cost per ride is $23.02, meaning that patients can spend an average of about $46.00 per visit. The average GBMC cancer patient requires at least 14 rides monthly. Most of us have had a family member, friend, or someone close battling cancer. Treatment is never easy, and at times the financial toll is overwhelming.
The funds donated by Saffer Plumbing go into a restricted fund and can only be used for transportation. We then use those funds to provide rides to breast cancer patients who need transportation. This donation will help provide over 200 rides to breast cancer patients. Again, we want to do everything we can to help meet basic financial needs, decrease stress levels, and allow patients with cancer to focus on healing. A donation like this makes a huge difference in our patients’ lives.
Q: Whose idea was the pink truck?
A: The pink truck belongs to one of the company’s plumbers whose grandmother is a breast cancer survivor. When asked to participate in this endeavor he was honored. One of his recent customers, when informed that part of the proceeds from that day’s work would go to helping breast cancer patients, was really touched. It meant a lot to her being a cancer survivor herself. This truly shows the value of this initiative.
Thank you, Brandon, for the valuable information and my gratitude to Saffer Plumbing, Heating, and Electric for doing what they can to help our patients get to their cancer treatments.
Recently, members of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. - Upsilon Epsilon Omega Chapter, donated chemo care packages to our patients. The care packages included a journal, lotion, Queasy Pops, hand sanitizer, socks, snacks, and more!
People living with cancer benefit from the power of human connections. These carefully selected products are geared to help ease the short-term side effects of treatment and brighten a cancer patient’s day.
I would like to thank Dawn C. Stefanik, AA, MLT, BSN, RN, OCN, Nurse Manager- Infusion & Infusion Pharmacy at our Sandra & Malcolm Berman Cancer Institute, for helping to coordinate this work.
Again, we are so grateful for the generosity of the community and truly appreciate their help in brightening the day for our cancer patients.
There is no question that Emergency Department nurses have some of the hardest jobs and make an immense difference when every second counts. They have the expertise in caring for all emergencies, across all stages of life, and they work very hard.
Last week we celebrated Emergency Nurses Week. I want to thank our ER nurses for making a difference in the lives of people every day, every shift. Now more than ever, it’s important to recognize and appreciate their commitment in caring for our patients.
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