Certificate in Cancer Care

Department Contact:

Chair: Dr. Stephen Baker, sbaker@francis.edu

Program Description:

Cancer rehabilitation can assist individuals with cancer in improving their physical, psychosocial, and vocational function within the limitations imposed by the disease of cancer and its treatments. The healthcare system that delivers cancer care is changing with the recognition that there are urgently needed improvements to the quality of cancer care. This includes all stakeholders, cancer care teams, patients, their families, researchers, and payers working together to develop a higher system for cancer care.

The Cancer Care curriculum provides education in biology, epidemiology, psychosocial and methods of treatment and exercise interventions of cancer so that the graduate has a more complete understanding of the disease as well as the skills, knowledge, and abilities to assist patients and their caregivers to deal with this disease and its limitations. The Cancer Care program is interdisciplinary in nature so as to provide effective and patient-centered focus. The curriculum is designed so that all professions learn from active practitioners from a variety of disciplines.

The need for health professionals in cancer care is expected to grow well into the 21st century, which makes the study of Cancer Care an excellent choice for those seeking employment directly after completing the certificate. The need for more efficient and effective means of preventing disease and maintaining the health of populations and our planet will continue to increase the demand for graduates with a focus on public health and patient-centered care.