The James provides a comprehensive survivorship program for patients and their families. “People are living longer with cancer and how do we make sure they have the best quality of life during their treatment and the years beyond,” said Denise Schimming, APRN-CNP, a certified nurse practitioner and survivorship specialist. Schimming and Julie DeBord, MSW, LISW-S, manager of JamesCare for Life, discussed the history, growth, the numerous and growing number of programs they offer and how they connect with patients and their families. “JamesCare for Life has been around for more than 20 years,” DeBord said. “We started with 10 programs and now we average more than 30 programs a month and we’re continually looking at how can we meet the needs of our cancer patients and their families.” Some of the many programs JamesCare for Life offers include music and art therapy, nutrition classes and healthy cooking demonstrations, physical therapy, individual and group sessions from mental-health professionals, and presentations by James experts on a wide range of cancer-related topics, such as lymphedema. JamesCare for Life also provides equine therapy for families and the Garden of Hope is a large farm that provides patients and caregivers the opportunity to harvest and take home a wide variety of vegetables and herbs. “Cancer can be isolating and scary and we have educational classes to help with coping during times of uncertainty to manage stress, mindfulness programs for stress reduction and support groups and one-on-one care support,” DeBord said. Schimming and her team connect with patients while they undergo treatment, while DeBord and her JamesCare for Life team offer free programs for patients and their caregivers after treatment. Schimming and DeBord work together to meet the needs of patients and create new programs. An example is the recent addition of two certified child-life specialists. “We heard from patients that they didn’t know how to tell their children and their grandchildren about their cancer,” Schimming said. “We hired two certified child-life specialists, one for inpatients and one for outpatients. They’re experts in helping families cope with medical illness and we created a special playroom [in the James] for these interventions.”