HAC Adds New Clinic Time for the Free Cancer Clinic

6/1/2018

Karen Kowal demonstrates how to use a trigger point shoulder pillow

At the Cancer Clinic Caregiver Appreciation Event, Karen Kowal demonstrates how to use the trigger point shoulder pillow.

There are many unique programs at the Healing Arts Center that are designed to contribute to the community while providing students with opportunities to explore the many facets of care that massage therapy can offer. Perhaps the most important is HAC's free cancer clinic. This clinic is designed to provide holistic wellness care to anyone who is in treatment for cancer. There is no charge for this service.

Click To Learn More About The Clinic

Massage Therapy offers many benefits for cancer patients. It can greatly reduce the stress and anxiety that often arises from having cancer and can reduce or eliminate the pain of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Student therapists who participate in the clinic are among HAC's best, in fact, being chosen to participate in the HAC Free Cancer Clinic is considered honors status at graduation. Being of service is part of the HAC mission and our students and graduates deliver care through Reiki and light-touch massage to clients who truly can use healing touch. HAC has developed considerable expertise in restoring quality of life to cancer patients.

New developments in the Healing Art Center’s Free Cancer Clinic include:

Additional Clinic Time
Wellness Events for Cancer Clinic clients
Call for Graduate Cancer Clinicians
Recognition of Cancer Clinicians who graduated last week

Any Cancer Patient Can Receive Free Care

The Free Cancer Clinic now has appointments available and is accepting new clients. Starting the last week of May, The Healing Arts Center has openings twice a week on Mondays and Wednesdays. The requirements for free care are:

Clients must be in active treatment for cancer, and
Clients must have permission from their oncologist to receive care.

Now that there are more clinic times, HAC invites all graduates who were Cancer Clinicians to return to help bring Reiki and the power of healing touch to clients in the Cancer Clinic. In other news, HAC has recently started hosting demonstrations of wellness practices for Cancer Clinic clients and their families and caregivers. The end of May marks the end of one school session and the beginning of the next. May 25th, HAC graduated six Cancer Clinic Clinicians.

Karen Kowal shows attendees how to use Mother Earth Pillows

Karen Kowal, creator of Mother Earth Pillows, explains how to use the shoulder trigger point pillow

Newly Added Clinic Time

In addition to the regularly scheduled clinic on Monday afternoons, the every-other Wednesday morning clinic time has been replaced by afternoon clinic availability every Wednesday.

Appointments available in the Free Cancer Clinic during these times:
Mondays: 1:30pm - 5:30pm
Wednesdays: 1:30pm - 5:30pm

Learn more and apply to be a client in the Cancer Clinic.

Apply For Care

Or if you prefer, stop by or call (314) 647-8080

Wellness Events

Karen and a student clinician give attendees shoulder massages with the hot Mother Earth pillows

Karen Kowal and Laura Gladis, a student clinician, give two attendees shoulder pillosage

Recently, HAC started a new series of events geared towards clients and caregivers of the Cancer Clinic to demonstrate various soothing and self-care modalities. The first event, Mo Costello demonstrated Vibrational Sound Therapy using crystal singing bowls.
Earlier in May, HAC hosted an Appreciation Event for the caregivers as well as clients of the Cancer Clinic.

At the Caregiver Appreciation Event on May 9, Karen Kowal presented Pillosage, a gentle massage method using heated flax pillows to perform thermal therapy to treat tension and pain. She had an array of hot flax pillows, in different shapes and sizes, and demonstrated with the attendees' help, how to use these at home. Everyone was having fun and light refreshments were available. Student clinicians from the Cancer Clinics were on hand to give chair massages to the attendees.

Everyone that was in attendance came away with new techniques for integrating hot pillows into their self-care or therapies.

Call for Volunteers

As the Free Clinic has grown, HAC has reopened the clinic to graduate volunteers. Anyone with massage therapy or Reiki training can volunteer to treat clients in the clinic. Clinic participation requires special training that is provided by HAC for free to volunteers. HAC has had many honor students attend training for the cancer clinic, and we welcome them back contribute to this amazing service for cancer clinic clients. We are expanding our services in the Cancer Clinic and have opened the door to new clients and new volunteers. Join in and make a difference!

A student clinician gives attendee of the Caregiver Appreciation Event a chair massage in the Ocean of Reiki Room

Are you a graduate of the Healing Arts Center who has already been trained to deliver care in the Cancer Clinic? We would love for you to lend your healing hands to this amazing cause. Clinics are on Monday afternoons 1:30pm – 5:30pm, Wednesday afternoons 1:30pm - 5:30pm. Contact Terrie Yardley-Nohr to find out when help is needed.

Graduation: Not an End, but a Beginning

Its that time again when HAC graduates students and sends them off to share the healing power of touch. Students who have achieved a certain level of academic excellence are invited to train as cancer clinicians and serve in the Cancer Clinic. Those students who choose to take the training and serve in the clinic are honored at the graduation Red Robe ceremony for their commitment to helping and healing through body work and energy work.

We are proud to have recognized these students for their service in the Cancer Clinic: