Integrative Medicine

Our Mission:

To combine the best treatment with support and education to promote healing and wellness for each patient.

Integrative Medicine is an important concept at PCI, combining evidence-based complementary therapies with the most up-to-date cancer treatments. Through our use of integrative medicine, people touched by cancer, including patients, loved ones and friends can find help in dealing with not only the physical, but also the psychological, emotional, spiritual, and social aspects of adapting to this life-changing illness. Because cancer is a disease that affects not only the body, but also the heart, mind, and soul, this approach to care can improve both well-being and the quality of life.

The integrative services listed below are used at PCI to help reduce stress, pain and anxiety, to manage symptoms, and to increase a sense of well-being. We will continue to develop and expand our program based on patient interest and need.

Family Support Services

Family Support Services is a unique program provided at no cost to the patient or the patient’s family by PCI to address the many needs of our patients and their families. We understand that by assisting families with the unexpected challenges they face as their loved one encounters the cancer experience, we can help our patients better cope with and ultimately succeed in their battle with cancer.

Our staff is trained to determine your family’s needs, whether they are social, emotional, financial, or otherwise, and to provide specific guidance and assistance. Whether it is helping with travel arrangements for far-away family members, arranging a home health referral, or simply providing a sympathetic ear to listen, we do everything in our power to help a patient’s family provide the patient with the support they need to get well.

Our family support services allow us to quickly coordinate referrals to various local services that patient families might need, such as:

	Home Healthcare Services
	Medical Equipment Supply Companies
	Transportation Assistance
	Support Groups
	Meals on Wheels
	Private Duty Agencies
	Disability Benefits Coordination
	Home Hospice and Hospice House
	Financial Assistance

Massage Therapy

PCI MASSAGE THERAPY PROGRAM

Our healing mission at PCI is to focus on the whole person. We take into account the well being of their body, mind, and spirit.  If you are coming in for treatments, you will be offered reflexology massage for your feet and/or hands. This is about a twenty-minute session and is very beneficial to your whole body.

We have a beautiful massage room in each clinic, which is available to you for a full body massage once a month on a day you are not having a treatment. Again, this service is part of your treatment plan and there is no cost to you.

Atmosphere is everything in the massage room. You will hear the gentle trickle of water as well as soft music. The lighting is dim to allow you to drift away and the artwork sets a soothing and relaxing mood in the room.

The following is a list of small group experiences we will be offering periodically. Please feel free to indicate your interest and join us.

HOW MASSAGE CAN BENEFIT YOU?

There are many studies supporting the benefits of massage for the person with cancer. Documented benefits include stress and anxiety reduction, decrease in pain, and a decrease in possible side effects from medical treatments (nausea, constipation, peripheral neuropathy, and fatigue).  The first thing you might notice after a massage is that you just feel better in your body. You feel lighter, you move more freely, breathing is easier, and there is a sense of peace that wasn’t there before.  We are receiving an enthusiastic response to our program such as the client who said, “If I can keep getting massage, I know I can get through my chemotherapy!”

THE PCI THERAPISTS

Kathy Shore is at PCI Newport News and Amy Hunt is located at PCI Williamsburg. You will be introduced to your therapist along with the rest of your treatment team. At that time, the therapist will tell you about the program and give you information about how massage can benefit you personally.

The massage therapists at PCI are specially trained to offer bodywork that complements the medical treatments our clients are receiving. We are finding that the combination of touch therapy and medical treatment maximizes the care we are able to offer.

"The highest Expression of compassion is human touch"

Pet Therapy

What is a Therapy Dog?

Therapy Dogs are specially trained to visit people in nursing homes, hospitals and other health care facilities with the goal of improving people's emotional health and giving unconditional love.

Why Take a Dog Visiting in Health Care Facilities?

Visiting with dogs can help people feel less lonely, and less depressed.  Visits from dogs can provide a welcome change from routine, or the renewal of old friendships.  People become more active and responsive both during and after visiting with animals.

A dog's visit can offer entertainment or a welcome distraction from pain and infirmity.  People often talk to the dogs, and share with them their thoughts and feelings and memories.  Dog visits provide something to look forward to.  Stroking a dog can reduce a person's blood pressure.  Petting encourages use of hands and arms, stretching and turning.

The dog makes it easier for two strangers to talk.  It gives people a common interest and provides a focus for conversation.  Many people in hospitals or group homes have had to give up pet ownership and they miss the casual acceptance a pet gives them.  A dog pays little attention to age or physical ability, but accepts people as they are.  The benefits continue even after the visit.  The visit leaves behind memories not only of the visit, but also of past experiences.  It offers something for people to share.

Certified Pet Therapy Dogs

Piper

Zip

Nugget

Throughout history music has been used to soothe and rejuvenate the human spirit.  However, only recently has this application for music been applied in clinical settings. It is called “Music Therapy” and is beginning to pop up in medical settings such as hospitals and dentist offices throughout the world.  Techniques of Music Therapy are diverse, ranging from listening to music to participating in musical activities.   Music Therapy yields benefits such as the reduction of perceived pain and anxiety, promotion of positive moods, and improvement in the quality of one’s life. Through its implementation in clinical trials, music therapy is becoming recognized as a legitimate source of integrative medicine for patients suffering from all forms of ailment.  In addition, Music Therapy’s increasing recognition by the medical community has allowed more patients to reap its benefits.

In continuing our efforts to provide our patients with the latest forms of care and comfort, PCI, under the vision of Robert Ellis, and the direction of Greg Gernon, has implemented a music therapy program in the Williamsburg and Gloucester offices. The Music Therapy program has been successful in both offices and plans are being made to expand the program to all our office locations.

Under construction.

Updated July 11, 2007