Jim and Jane Miller Establish Patient Navigation Program at Loyola Medicine’s Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center

Newswise — MAYWOOD, IL – Thanks to a generous gift from Jim and Jane Miller, Loyola Medicine is launching the Jim and Jane Miller Patient Navigation Program in the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center. This gift will support the hiring of dedicated healthcare professionals to help patients take advantage of Loyola Medicine’s unique multidisciplinary care and overcome any obstacles they may face on their cancer journey.

“Jane and I are pleased to be able to seed the launch of the patient navigation program at the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center at Loyola Medicine,” said Jim Miller, an Oak Brook native and Loyola patient. “We know this program will enhance the coordination of complex care for patients who are experiencing what can be an overwhelming time in their lives and make an important difference to patients, their families and the dedicated physicians, nurses and technicians at Loyola.”

During year one, the Miller’s gift will support the cost of three patient navigators focused on areas with large patient populations including breast, gastrointestinal and thoracic oncology. The following year, two additional navigators will join the team to concentrate on neuro-oncology, gynecology, prostate cancer and cancers of head and neck. These navigators will free up frontline caregivers to focus on the clinical aspect of patient care and work to the highest level of their licensure.

“The diagnosis of cancer can be overwhelming and lead to a complex interplay of tests, provider appointments and procedures,” said William Small, Jr., MD, FACRO, FACR, FASTRO, director of the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center. “Navigating these appointments is critical to prompt access and eliminating barriers to care. The generous gift by Jim and Jane Miller will go a long way to improve the lives of our cancer patients.”

Jim and Jane Miller have been patients at Loyola Medicine for over 40 years. The Millers are committed to ensuring everyone has access to high-quality health care. Loyola Medicine is fortunate to partner with them to advance health equity in the communities we serve.

The U.S. population is experiencing increasing instances of cancer diagnoses and survivorship. To meet this growing need, the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center brings together all aspects of cancer care to one site. Beautifully designed for the comfort and convenience of our patients, the center provides access to clinical trials and promotes optimal collaboration between healthcare providers. 

Loyola Medicine is nationally recognized for its expert team of specially trained cancer doctors who come from a wide variety of clinical specialties. These multidisciplinary specialists provide the expertise, translational research experience and compassionate care needed to diagnose and treat cancer. They work together, taking a collaborative approach to cancer care. 

Named in honor of the late Archbishop of Chicago Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, the center contains clinic areas, a day hospital and the Coleman Foundation Image Renewal Center, as well as extensive research laboratories, offices and educational space. 

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About Loyola Medicine

Loyola Medicine, a member of Trinity Health, is a nationally ranked academic, quaternary care system based in Chicago’s western suburbs. The three-hospital system includes Loyola University Medical Center, Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, MacNeal Hospital, as well as convenient locations offering primary care, specialty care and immediate care services from more than 1,500 physicians throughout Cook, Will and DuPage counties. Loyola is a 547-licensed-bed hospital in Maywood that includes the William G. and Mary A. Ryan Center for Heart & Vascular Medicine, the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, a Level 1 trauma center, Illinois’s largest burn center, a certified comprehensive stroke center and a children’s hospital. Having delivered compassionate care for over 50 years, Loyola also trains the next generation of caregivers through its academic affiliation with Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine and Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing. Established in 1961, Gottlieb is a 247-licensed-bed community hospital in Melrose Park with the Judd A. Weinberg Emergency Department, the Loyola Center for Metabolic Surgery and Bariatric Care and the Loyola Cancer Care & Research Facility at the Marjorie G. Weinberg Cancer Center. MacNeal is a 374-licensed-bed teaching hospital in Berwyn with advanced medical, surgical and psychiatric services, acute rehabilitation, an inpatient skilled nursing facility and a 68-bed behavioral health program and community clinics.

For more information, visit loyolamedicine.org. You can also follow Loyola Medicine on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter.

About Trinity Health

Trinity Health is one of the largest not-for-profit, Catholic health care systems in the nation. It is a family of 123,000 colleagues and nearly 27,000 physicians and clinicians caring for diverse communities across 26 states. Nationally recognized for care and experience, the Trinity Health system includes 88 hospitals, 135 continuing care locations, the second largest PACE program in the country, 136 urgent care locations and many other health and well-being services. Based in Livonia, Michigan, its annual operating revenue is $21.5 billion with $1.4 billion returned to its communities in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs.

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