Support & Survivorship

BID Plymouth nutritionists can work with you on a personal dietary plan. We help you maximize your nutrition to keep up your strength during treatment. We can help you get enough calories while choosing healthy options to improve your overall health. Call Bridget Mahoney, RD, at 508-830-2380.

Sometimes, even after receiving the best medical care, you may feel pain. The BID Plymouth Pain Management Center offers a wide variety of progressive treatments. We have options for any type of pain that doesn’t respond to conventional therapy.

After our pain care team evaluates the cause of your pain, we may offer one or more of these treatments:

• Acupuncture
• Injection therapies
• Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation

For more information or to make an appointment, call  508-830-2870.

We focus on restoring and improving your quality of life throughout the course of your cancer care plan. With that in mind, everyone who visits the Jordan Hospital Club Cancer Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital–Plymouth can benefit from a rehab consultation at some point during your care. You can benefit from this consult regardless of your primary diagnosis or treatment plan.

Rehabilitation services — including physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy — can help with:

• Balance and gait
• Cognitive retraining
• Fine motor skills
• Lymphedema
• Post-surgical incisions
• Restrictions after radiation therapy

For more information call 508-830-2182.

Reiki is a simple form of therapy that uses hands-on, no-touch and visualization techniques. The goal of reiki is to improve the flow of life energy in a person. Reiki can provide many of the same benefits as traditional massage therapy, such as:

• Increasing energy
• Reducing stress
• Relieving the pain and symptoms of health conditions
• Stimulating the immune system

Doctors, nurses, psychologists and other health professionals use reiki to bring touch and deeper caring into their healing practices. For more information call  508-830-2390.

The social worker at the Jordan Hospital Club Cancer Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital–Plymouth can provide support and connect you to resources needed during treatment and beyond. Call Kathi Horsman at 508-830-3019 or 508-732-1651.

Cancer and its treatments can have a long-lasting or late-onset effect on your body. A survivorship plan empowers you to take charge of your renewed health. It teaches you how to educate your family and health care team regarding your needs. This plan relieves you from having to recall all the details of treatment, and it ensures all future health care providers work as a team in your care.

The survivorship care plan is individualized, since one size does not fit all. You can receive a care plan after finishing acute treatment (surgery, chemo, radiation) for breast cancer. The first step of the plan is to assess your needs.The team then creates your survivorship plan from the details you provide in this assessment. This process ensures that your plan meets your individual needs.

Survivorship Care Plans include information on:

• Cancer diagnosis
• Treatment summary (type of treatment, drugs, dosages, possible adverse effects and responses)
• Expected short- and long-term effects from therapy
• Experienced treatment toxicities
• General health follow-up care with scheduled Primary Care follow-up visit
• Lifestyle modification recommendations
• List of providers and contact information
• Potential late effects from therapy
• Psychosocial, spiritual and sexuality concerns
• Recommended cancer surveillance and screenings
• Signs and symptoms of cancer recurrence
• Other resources

During your visit with a Breast Cancer Survivorship staff member, we:

• Address your needs and set goals for healthy living.
• Encourage participation in ongoing program offerings.
• Ensure you have an appointment set with your primary care physician.
• Make referrals as needed, such as: behavioral health, community services, integration therapies, and support groups.
• Provide survivorship resource packet, which includes the Livestrong program at the YMCA.
• Review your individualized survivorship care plan and recommend follow-up.

Palliative care focuses on improving life and providing comfort to people of all ages who have a serious, chronic and life-threatening illness. Your interdisciplinary palliative care team works together to provide the services that are best for you. Palliative care aims to enhance your quality of life and to reduce your pain and other distressing physical symptoms. It also offers spiritual comfort and psychosocial support for you and those helping with your care.

For people who’ve lost a loved one to cancer, Cranberry Hospice offers bereavement support groups. The groups meet twice a month and allow people to share their thoughts, feelings and experiences with others who are grieving. There are three groups: children, pre-teen/teen and adult.

For more information call 508-746-0215.

For people in the final phase of a terminal illness, the caring staff of Cranberry Hospice helps them live with a focus on quality of life and comfort. Our staff works closely with physicians to coordinate hospice care to meet the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of you and your family. For more than 25 years, Cranberry Hospice and Palliative Care has offered hospice and bereavement support services to the patients and families of Plymouth County, the South Shore and Cape Cod.

A clinical nurse supervisor is available to speak with patients, family members and physicians to answer any of your questions about hospice.

We designed this area to offer you and your family an oasis of rest, relaxation and reflection. The garden and walkway are a celebration of life and a place to honor loved ones. The Healing Garden is located next to the front entrance of BID Plymouth’s PIDC Pavilion.

The Mentors for Hope Program pairs long-term cancer survivors with newly diagnosed patients to give support during their treatment. We match pairs based on diagnosis, treatment and wishes of the patient and survivor. You can communicate via email, telephone and in person at the Jordan Hospital Club Cancer Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital–Plymouth. The mentors attend specialized training and complete a mentorship program at BID Plymouth. Their primary role is to listen to and provide support to current patients.

For more information, contact Molly MacKay, RN, OCN, nurse navigator at  508-830-2226.

Cancer Survivors Network (CSN)

Cancer survivors and their families created the CSN to connect with others who have dealt with cancer. People in this virtual community share experiences, strength and hope using a free, interactive online service.

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Toll-free number: 1-800-4-CANCER or 1-800-422-6237

National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (NCCS)

For publications or the Cancer Survival Toolbox
Toll-free number: 1-877-NCCS-YES (1-877-622-7937)
Toll-free number: 1-888-650-9127

Patient Advocate Foundation

Toll-free number: 1-800-532-5274

Job Accommodation Network

Toll-free number: 1-800-526-7234
TTY: 1-877-781-9403