Hospital Cancer Care Unit
Access to 24-hour inpatient care is an important part of comprehensive cancer care. At Billings Clinic, we have a dedicated inpatient cancer care unit that complements our state-of-the-art outpatient Cancer Center facility.
Through thoughtful design, the Inpatient Cancer Care unit supports our vision of truly comprehensive cancer care and gives cancer patients and families a space that is supportive and healing.
Benefits to Our Patients
- Patients receive coordinated care from the same physicians for outpatient and inpatient care.
- Nurses, pharmacists, dietitians, case managers, chaplains, and other health professionals work together as a team to provide individualized cancer care.
- This oncology team meets daily to discuss patient care needs and facilitate a smooth transition home for patients.
Highlights of Our Facility
Patient Comfort and Safety
Patient comfort and safety are a top priority. The Inpatient Cancer Care unit features:
- 26 private patient suites with private bathrooms
- Special suites available for patients who are neutropenic (weakened immune systems), with a positive-airflow ventilation system that keeps harmful germs from entering the rooms
- Nourishment stations located throughout the unit for access to nutritional snacks and beverages
- An exercise room with high quality equipment to decrease disease and treatment-related fatigue. Physical activity may also improve quality of life by:
- Helping manage anxiety and depression
- Improving sleep quality
- Managing lymphedema
- Maintaining bone and muscle strength
- Decreasing recurrence
- Decentralized nursing stations outside each room allow faster response to patient needs
Family-Focused Environment
- Each room has a sofa that converts to a bed for a family member to spend the night
- Private family consultation rooms and resource centers with a variety of books
- Shared family gathering areas, including a kitchen/dining area near patient rooms where families and friends can cook their favorite meals, eat together or enjoy celebrations together
- Patient and family rooms have wireless Internet access
- All patient rooms have large exterior windows to maximize daylight exposure and provide scenic views of the rims, Deaconess Healing Garden or the Beartooth Mountains.
New Technology Supports Patients
The inpatient oncology nurses use new technology to help with patient safety including:
- Bedside computer tablets
- Remote heart monitors (telemetry) to monitor patients when they are out of their rooms
- A hands-free communication system that allows nurses to call a physician, nurse or other staff person without picking up a phone to page them or leaving the room.
Specialized Care
One of the advantages of a dedicated cancer care unit is the specialized oncology nurses who work with oncologists and other specialists. Many nurses on the unit are Oncology Certified Nurses (OCN), a national certification for nurses who work in cancer care. Billings Clinic has been internationally recognized with the Magnet ® Award for nursing care since 2006, due in part to having a high number of certified registered nurses on staff.
Additionally, nursing staff that administer chemotherapy must hold a current Oncology Nursing Society Chemotherapy/Biotherapy Providers card and be certified in chemotherapy/biotherapy administration by Billings Clinic.
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