Mental and Emotional Health
Any serious illness can impact mental health. For patients, caregivers, and their loved ones, going through cancer treatment can be a devastating experience. Receiving a potentially fatal diagnosis, enduring extensive treatment, and learning to live with the physical and cognitive limitations of the disease can cause anxiety and/or depression in many patients.
The Heller Center takes mental and emotional health very seriously. Our psychotherapists assess the mental health needs of the patient and their caregivers, and provides support and counseling in both our outpatient and inpatient units.
A complete psychosocial screening is performed with every newly diagnosed patient, to assess for anxiety, depression, coping and adjustment. Follow-up screenings are completed intermittently during, at the end of therapy with our Transition off Therapy (TOT) program, and during long-term follow-up program called THRIVE .
Each patient is provided support and offered individual counseling when appropriate, or a referral to community based counseling is made which is determined by location or availability. Emotional support is provided to patient, siblings, or caregivers, and behavioral training is implemented when needs are identified.
In an effort to facilitate appropriate referrals for cognitive testing, the psychotherapist collaborates with the neuropsychologist to implement other mental health screenings when the cancer or its treatment has caused cognitive impairment or delays.
When needs are identified, the neuropsychologist completes a comprehensive combination of screenings and evaluations to identify cognitive delays.
The Heller Center offers:
- 2 licensed Psychotherapists who assess, support and provide counseling
- A complete and thorough PAT (Psychosocial Assessment Tool) assessment for each new patient family
- Quality of Life surveys for new patients, TOT (Transition off Therapy) and THRIVE (Long-term Follow-up)
- Suicide and Depression and Anxiety screens
- Counseling for patients, parents and siblings while on therapy and community based referrals for off therapy and bereaved families