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Articles on Connexion Cancer

Cancer patients now able to surf the Net at MUHC
Just imagine how much more pleasant a hospital stay would be for a patient if she or he had access to email, online groups and information, to music or videos and even online games and banking
Montreal, June 7, 2010 - Thanks to the perseverance of Maude Woods-Lavoie, Internet access will soon be free for cancer patients on the 17^th floor of the McGill University Health Centre’s Montreal General Hospital campus. Woods-Lavoie, herself a cancer survivor, initiated Connexion Cancer -- a fundraising initiative to provide access to the Internet for cancer patients with the objective of improving quality of life and providing a sense of connection to patients receiving chemotherapy or recovering from their cancer treatments.

In 2006, while Woods-Lavoie was receiving treatment for Leukemia, the idea for the project began to take hold. With television as her only source of entertainment, Woods-Lavoie felt disconnected from the outside world. “I had just moved from Winnipeg to Montreal. I had ulcers in my throat, hair loss and nausea and I had nothing to distract me. I was unable to talk on the phone, which left me feeling isolated and lonely,” says Woods-Lavoie. “I felt as though I was a fish in a fish bowl, surrounded by people staring in at me, but unable to reach out and connect. I felt helpless. That is when I had the idea.”

Once her treatment ended Woods-Lavoie approached the Canadian Cancer Society with the idea. A donor stepped in to offer close to $30,000 towards the initiative and a corporate donor offered $4,000—a good start for the estimated $50,000 that would be needed to get the program up and running. The MUHC and Cedars Cancer Foundation absorbed the rest. And MissTconcept produced the Connexion Cancer website at a quarter of the cost. Woods-Lavoie’s ultimate goal is to take this initiative across Canada by continuing to raise funds for the project.

“Cedars is proud to support Maude Woods-Lavoie’s compassionate and practical Internet solution for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy,” says Cedars Director General, Jeff Shamie. “Working in collaboration with our CanSupport program, Connexion Cancer is another way we can help cancer patients, one person at a time.”

Laptops will be attached to an arm at the patient’s bedside. At the Montreal General Hospital 15 stations have been installed - one for each bed - each of which will have access to the Internet. There will also be an open chat forum available between patients and their families and friends. All social media, such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, will be accessible due to a large bandwidth. For the first year, recurrent fees will be picked up by Cedars Cansupport group.

“This is a turn-key solution, specifically designed for patients, by patients. The goal of the program is to improve the quality of life and comfort for those unable to connect with the outside world, or even other patients,” explains Woods-Lavoie.

“Providing patients with Internet access will not only serve to occupy the patients during their cancer treatments, it will also keep them connected to their friends, family and social networks during their time in the hospital,” says Dr. Denis Cournoyer, Director of the MUHC Research Ethics Office.

For more information on Connexion Cancer visit -

http://www.muhcfoundation.com/en/connexion_cancer

Interview on CBC NEWS/Connect with Mark Kelley

http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/News/TV%20Shows/Connect%20with%20Mark%20Kelley/ID=1549367320

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