GILBERT, AZ (AZFamily) — Going through cancer is difficult enough. That’s why Banner Health and Taylor Morrison teamed up to help in situations when the best medical treatment for a patient is far from home.
Cecilia Cortes was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in October of last year.
Friday, she shared the news that she’s in remission and looking forward to staying in a new space while she recovers from her bone marrow procedure.
“More peace of mind and I’m going to be healing more because there’s less pressure, there’s less worry,” she said.
Her daughter, Gissel Qurioz, has been her caretaker and was also her donor.
“Anything for my mom. I love her, she’s my world, my role model. She gave my brothers and I a very good example and inspiration that no matter how low life hits you, you get right back up,” Qurioz said.
Both are in the recovery stage, which means they need to be within 30 miles of the center.
It’s a much easier transition, thanks to the Home Away from Home Program.
“It can be the difference between life and death. Having the environment and the support system are critically important during a patient’s care journey,” said Michael Herring, the chief executive officer at Banner Gateway Medical Center.
This community features eight fully furnished temporary homes, meant to provide a place to stay to at least 80 patients a year while they receive treatment or recover from surgery.
“There is no cost, just the peace that’s going to bring, the hope that brings and there are studies that show that actually improves the outcome of the patient so we can honestly say these homes will improve health of patients,” Herring said.
The Banner Health Foundation also has a fund to help patients and their families offset the cost of hotel stays for prolonged treatment.
They have patients from every state, and they often say hotel room stays, even at a discount, can be difficult.
For the Home Away from Home Program, patients will need to qualify to receive the temporary housing.
“We followed our same process we have for anyone who applied for financial aid in regards to percentage of poverty level,” said Herring. “Another criteria obviously is how far outside the reach of the Valley.”
Patient stays depend on treatment, but an average stay is between six and eight weeks.
For Cortes and her daughter, that’s time they don’t have to spend driving back and forth from Coolidge.
“They would try to call transportation to get here here all the way to (Banner) MD Anderson but sometimes transportation wouldn’t want to come and get here because it was too far,” Qurioz said. “Happy and grateful for everyone who collaborated with this project.”
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