Patients and families engage the health care system while trying to best manage a diagnosis that will significantly impact all areas of their lives. The Department of Supportive Care Medicine was specifically envisioned and structured to provide a seamless suite of comprehensive services that anticipate and meet the supportive care needs of patients, families and our colleagues. The department is unique in that it is, by design, profoundly patient- and family-centered, rather than the traditional profession-centric approach. All of the supportive care professionals and the two Patient and Family Advisory Councils (English and Spanish) are organized into one integrated interdisciplinary department that is driven by how patients can best access services to maximize the benefits of medical care.
The Department of Supportive Care Medicine/Sheri & Les Biller Patient and Family Resource Center is recognized as a national leader in providing patient-centered, comprehensive supportive care from an interdisciplinary team of professionals. Clinical observerships are available.
In 2015, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) awarded Mt. Sinai School of Medicine a $1.4 million in collaboration with City of Hope to train supportive care clinicians in the delivery of advanced evidenced-based cognitive behavioral interventions for anxiety, fatigue, depression and insomnia, described as the four largest contributors to cancer related distress.
In 2013, the NCI awarded City of Hope $1.6 million to train health care professionals around the world how to implement biopsychosocial screening programs of excellence.
Information and nonbranded materials regarding a number of our department’s clinical supportive care programs are also available.