When Alesa Garner was retiring as oncology care center coordinator at CHI St. Vincent Infirmary, hospital leaders asked her if she would consider running the New Outlook Cancer Recovery Program.
A cancer survivor herself who was familiar with New Outlook, she not only accepted but decided to "jump in with all four feet, not just two." She set her retirement plans aside and has stayed for 26 years with the program that provides free services to cancer patients treated at the Little Rock, Arkansas, hospital and others from a wide region.
"I have helped with, in my time here, someone in every county except one in Arkansas," Garner, 69, said, "and from all over surrounding states."
CHI St. Vincent's auxiliary launched New Outlook 29 years ago, originally to gather resources for women diagnosed with cancer. It now offers a wide range of support, counseling and other forms of assistance, such as access to wigs and mastectomy bras that can be custom ordered, for patients fighting or recovering from cancer. The program is funded by the CHI St. Vincent Foundation.
"People don't have to be St. Vincent patients," Garner noted. "We do Zoom counseling for those out in rural Arkansas and navigate for any person, to services they might need in a year, even if it's not time yet, we give the resources."
New Outlook also provides blankets, sleep caps, cushions for chemotherapy ports and mastectomy pillows. "They're all handmade. That's really special," Garner said.
The program also helps patients at the Arkansas Children's Hospital, which doesn't have a wig program. "If they have kids going through chemo, they come over here," Garner said. "Caps come in pink for females and purple for males. Guys, they get cold, too, and bald, not just women."
A cancer survivor
A clinical microbiologist by training, Garner has been with CHI St. Vincent or in her current role with its foundation for 41 years. Her mother and sister also worked at and retired from CHI St. Vincent, which is part of CommonSpirit Health.
Garner was diagnosed with breast cancer in the late 1990s while raising two teenage children. Her family had no history of any type of cancer. "It was a very shocking thing to happen," Garner said.
Her cancer was caught at stage one and had not spread. Since her treatment, she has been cancer free. "It was caught so very early, which is such a proponent of preventative care, and listening to your body," she said.
Before being hired to run New Outlook, she learned about the program through a support group for cancer patients at CHI St. Vincent.
As the program's coordinator, Garner estimates that she works with 50 to 60 patients per month. Her assistant, Rasa Gillean, was one of them. Gillean came to the program because of a breast cancer diagnosis 17 years ago. Now she volunteers with New Outlook once a week. She processes patients' requests for resources, sends mail and helps fit wigs.
Her assistance allows Garner to spend more time with patients. "She's an inspiration to me in my life, every time I see her," Gillean said.
Education and support
In her role, Garner educates patients about side effects of treatment and management of symptoms. She also recommends counseling. "None of us are perfect in our brain," she said. "There's been a lot of research, but just hearing the words, 'You have cancer,' can cause PTSD."
She also encourages cancer patients to join support groups. "It's very important," she said. "People resist getting involved in a support group because they think you sit and cry. But it's not that; it's camaraderie seeing people's faces going through the same thing you went through, experiencing the same thing, but people still living life."
Over the years, other cancer centers have tried to entice Garner with job offers and higher salaries. She has turned them down because of her dedication to CHI St. Vincent's mission to help the vulnerable and the poor.
"It's not about making money," Garner said. "I like the morning and evening prayer. I like the mission. When you are diagnosed with cancer, you are vulnerable. Everyone is born with a mission. Let's get about doing it."