Baptist Cancer Center-Golden Triangle opened its new chemotherapy infusion center to colleagues and physicians during an open house on March 7. The newly renovated space on the third floor of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle’s Outpatient Pavilion officially opened to patients on Feb. 25.
The new center is more than double the square footage of the old chemotherapy infusion area and can accommodate up to 23 chemotherapy patients. It includes four private patient areas and four isolation rooms. The old space could only accommodate up to eight patients and included only two private rooms, according to Cancer Center Director Tom Bailey.
“The center is more inviting for patients and allows more room for staff and patients. It also allows for each patient to have a family member come with them to treatment if they desire,” said Bailey. “We encourage our chemotherapy patients to bring a family member to treatment,” he added.
Regular medical oncology and radiation patients will continue to be seen. Existing oncology clinic services will expand into the space formerly used for chemotherapy infusion, Bailey explained.
The new chemotherapy infusion center follows another expansion in oncology services by Baptist Golden Triangle. In late 2012, the hospital and Baptist Medical Group, the physician practice arm of the Baptist system, opened a cancer and cardiology clinic in Starkville. The clinic offers chemotherapy for up to eight patients at one time, oncology and cardiac clinic services by a staff medical oncologist and cardiologist. The clinic is located at 104 Hospital Drive in Starkville, Miss.
The Starkville clinic makes oncology and cardiac services more convenient for patients who live west of Columbus, according to Baptist Golden Triangle CEO and Administrator Paul Cade. “It is especially better physically for those patients taking weekly chemotherapy treatments to be able to take their treatments in Starkville than to have to come to Columbus,” he said.