New Sandra R. Berman Pavilion will make cancer treatment less stressful

Each year, about 650,000 cancer patients receive systemic therapy in an outpatient oncology clinic in the United States. The team at the Sandra and Malcolm Berman Cancer Institute at GBMC is working to make that experience as comfortable as possible for their patients with the design and build of the Sandra R. Berman Pavilion, slated to open in early 2025.

Geoffrey A. Neuner, MD, Radiation Oncologist at GBMC and chair of the fundraising for this initiative, says, “This new building has been a long time coming for GBMC. All cancer services, including support services, will be housed there, and patients will have direct access to the radiation oncology department.”

Dr. Neuner explains the various components of the oncology department have been collaborating while physically separated for years. “This new pavilion will give us a chance to have physical and intellectual integration,” he adds.

In addition to a more cohesive approach to healthcare, the new pavilion will help make treatment easier for patients. Virtual focus groups were held during design planning to provide insight on what patients wanted in the new Infusion Center. Some desire more privacy, while others prefer open spaces for treatment, so the GBMC team designed a center with 10 private rooms, two isolations rooms, and 14 infusion stations in more open areas. This allows for greater flexibility when patients need or want to be separated from other patients during their treatment.

Dr. Neuner emphasizes the importance of healthcare systems having an inviting space for cancer treatment. “The entire campus of GBMC is very bucolic, and the new building will have a bank of windows looking out into the trees,” he explains. “It can’t be understated what kind of calming effect that sort of setting has on patients.”

In addition to idyllic views, the pavilion is set up for practicality, with a parking lot located directly underneath the Cancer Institute. A newly designed, state-of-the-art infusion pharmacy will also be located in the Infusion Center, with its own check-in/check-out space and waiting room.

The interdisciplinary collaboration that will come from the care teams being physically located in the same space is exciting, Dr. Neuner says. However, it’s the positive effect the Infusion Center and the entire Sandra R. Berman Pavilion will have on patients that he’s most eagerly anticipating.

“I’m looking forward to my patients’ lives being easier and their whole journey through the cancer program being less fraught with logistical challenges,” he says.

To learn more about the Sandra R. Berman Pavilion and how GBMC is designing for the future of patient care, visit gbmcpromise.com.