1st appeared 11 December 1998

Cancer Resource Center in Blossom

The official opening of the Ida and Joseph Friend Resource Center at the UCSF Cancer Center took place Friday, Dec. 4. For the many patients, staff and community members who attended the dedication ceremony that evening, it was a chance to witness the blossoming of a labor of healing and compassion.

The Resource Center, located on the first floor of the clinical cancer building at UCSF/Mount Zion Medical Center, part of UCSF Stanford Health Care, was the vision of Joseph Friend, whose generous contribution made the center possible. The center includes a healing garden, cafe, library and boutique -- all with the goal of promoting well-being, comfort, and rejuvenation.

"The idea is to really humanize the hospital experience, " said Keren Stronach, coordinator of the Cancer Resource Center. "The patient reaction so far has been extremely favorable."

Friend to Friend, a unique cancer boutique operated by the Hospital Auxiliary of the UCSF/Mount Zion Medical Center, serves as a one-stop shop for cancer patients, their families, and friends. It carries wigs, scarves, prostheses, and other items, in addition to great gifts for the holidays. Proceeds from the boutique go to the Auxiliary, which then distributes funds to other patient services not covered by insurance.

The Friend Health Resource Center and Library provides multimedia information resources and a range of other services. It has two computers with Internet access for patient use, as well as a list of recommended Internet sites, and free access to the InfoTrac database, which is a user-friendly health search engine that draws from medical reference books, journals, dictionaries, and lay articles.

Library staff answer patient questions on their diagnoses and can give specific information about their types of cancer and treatment options, Stronach said. The center provides a large database on referrals, support groups at UCSF Stanford and in the Bay Area, information on low-cost transportation, legal services for people with cancer, and health benefits. The library also hosts monthly Cancer Center discussion forums (the next forum is on Healthy Desserts for the Holidays, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 5:30-7:30 p.m. in the new Ida's Cafe).

Ida's Cafe, which opened Monday, provides healthy, low-fat foods and also offers a coffee bar for Cancer Center visitors. Serving breakfast and lunch, the cafe has a wide selection of healthy pastries, salads, soups, quiches, entrees, pasta as well as desserts. The cafe is operated by Mark Yeager, a caterer who specializes in healthy foods and who has worked with Dean Ornish's heart disease reversal program.

The cafe opens out onto the Healing Garden, which provide patients, caregivers, and staff a place to quietly reflect. A specially built fountain, embedded with architectural pieces from the old School of Nursing building, sits amid cherry trees and wisteria. Soon patients and staff will plant bulbs of tulips, irises and other flowers, which will bloom this spring.

Upon entering the Cancer Center, one walks through a hallway embedded with 550 tiles created by patients. Each tile contains a personal story, accompanied by images of herbal remedies and their scientific and common name.

The tiles transform the first floor walls of the Cancer Center into a beautiful and poignant testament to the Resource Center's philosophy. "Each patient's story reminds us why we're here," said Stronach.

Links:

Dedication Ceremony for Friend Resource Center This Friday

Friend Resource Center

Source: Paula Murphy, Daybreak editor

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