Comprehensive Cancer Center awarded arts program

HCMC’s Comprehensive Cancer Center again named LIVESTRONG® Community Impact Project Finalist and Award Recipient

Hennepin County Medical Center’s (HCMC) Comprehensive Cancer Center was recently named one of the  Jeffrey Frank Wacks Music Therapy Program sites by theLIVESTRONG®Community Impact Project. It’s the second time the hospital’s cancer program has been selected thanks to an online voting campaign. HCMC will be awarded $15,600 to help replicate and implement the music therapy program at HCMC, one of three proven cancer support programs included in the 2014 Community Impact Project selected by the LIVESTRONG Foundation.  HCMC was one of more than 100 qualified hospitals, cancer centers, university students and community organizations in seven regions across the U.S. were selected to participate in the online voting campaign that determined the award recipients.

“We are so grateful to the LIVESTRONG Foundation and of course the many people who voted for us to receive the Jeffrey Frank Wacks Music Therapy Program for our patients,” explains Kelly Porter, Practice Manager of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at HCMC.  “We’ve seen firsthand how much an arts program means to our cancer patients, and we’re so excited to offer this to them.”

The Jeffrey Frank Wacks Music Therapy Program has become an essential component of the Carol G. Simon Cancer Center’s integrative approach to caring for cancer patients. The program’s overarching goal is to facilitate relaxation, decrease anxiety and stress, enhance wellness, improve pain management, and provide comfort and support for cancer patients and their caregivers. Music therapy is proven to reduce stress and pain levels associated with illness and hospitalization. For many patients, the simple act of listening to music provides a therapeutic release, promoting healing and overall wellbeing. Clinical music therapy services are provided on both an inpatient and outpatient basis. Two part-time music therapists conduct sessions with patients either at the bedside or in common (environmental) areas of the cancer center.

In addition to the Foundation’s financial support, the chosen organizations will receive various materials including facilitator manuals, participant materials; training and support from the model program’s staff; and access to additional tools and resources.

Conveniently located downtown Minneapolis on HCMC’s campus, the Comprehensive Cancer Center is committed to providing the finest in cancer-related services through an integrated system of health and social services. For more information about Hennepin County Medical Center’s Comprehensive Cancer Center, visit hcmc.org.