Compassionate Care
Compassion combined with outstanding medical care has become the driving force behind our healing ministry. Treating patients with compassion — true, deeply felt compassion that springs from the desire to provide healing — has the capacity to positively impact outcomes and quality of life.
In direct response to increasing need, MercyOne Richard Deming Cancer Center will hire more nurse navigators to guide patients through every step of their treatment, from diagnosis to recovery. Since we began this program in 2010 with a National Cancer Institute grant, patients and staff alike have appreciated the benefits these caring experts bring to the process.
We will renovate our radiation oncology suite and equip it with healing and nurturing upgrades that our specialists can immediately integrate into all aspects of their work.
As we continue to treat the whole person in addition to the disease, we plan to offer comprehensive palliative care to provide compassionate, quality of life-enhancing services for patients with incurable cancer, every step along their journey. We want to provide more financial assistance. We want to offer robust services for Iowa’s 172,000 cancer survivors, to ease their fears of remission and help them lead longer, healthier and more vibrant lives.
We also plan to incorporate integrative medicine services into our cancer center. This approach combines traditional cancer treatments that include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation with other healing practices that focus on quality of life. Integrative practices include acupuncture, meditation, massage therapy, music therapy and art therapy.
We will expand our survivorship program, which helps cancer survivors set goals and practice skills to optimize their health and wellness after treatment.
