To begin my sixth week of the Columbus Foundation Fellowship, at Hope Hollow, I was tasked with running an errand to the Ohio State University James Cancer Hospital to drop off restaurant gift cards and cash for a patient. While to some this may sound like a mundane errand, the purpose of the trip was far more consequential than a weekly trip to the grocery store.

Each and every patient that Hope Hollow assists has a distinct need that usually cannot be met by health care providers or government agencies. Additionally, Hope Hollow is the only non-profit in Columbus that provides direct services such as lodging, meals, transportation assistance, and emotional support to cancer patients and their loved ones in a rapid fashion (typically on the day that Hope Hollow receives a referral). 

One of the patients that Hope Hollow assisted on Monday was being discharged from the Ohio State University James Cancer Hospital and needed to travel home to Florida, with his belongings, on a Greyhound bus. The financial assistance that this patient needed was beyond the scope of assistance that the James Cancer Hospital permits. So, an administrator at the James Cancer Hospital suggested that the patient’s social worker contact Hope Hollow.

Without hesitation, Hope Hollow granted this patient’s request for financial assistance. For most people, especially people like myself who are fortunate enough to be healthy, it is unimaginable to have to travel hundreds of miles by Greyhound bus after battling cancer and being discharged from the hospital. But, for many cancer patients that Hope Hollow assists, a substantial amount of travel (however, typically not as far as Florida) is required in order to receive the best possible medical care.

When considering the cost of cancer treatment, the cost of traveling for treatment is often overlooked (especially for Columbus residents, who are lucky enough to live in a city with fantastic hospitals). Hope Hollow serves to fill in the gaps that health care providers and government agencies overlook when considering the financial burdens associated with cancer treatment.