Project seeks to reduce anxiety and provide comfort during diagnostic screenings

 HUNTSVILLE – Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children (HHW&C) celebrated the end of Breast Cancer Awareness Month on Halloween by launching a transformed patient experience for the 65,000-plus women who depend on the center for breast cancer diagnostic screenings each year. The intentional unit upgrades—including warm robes, a remodeled sub-waiting area, and the addition of soft music and soothing scents throughout—aim to reduce anxiety and provide comfort for these patients through a calmer, more spa-like environment.

A generous donation to Huntsville Hospital Foundation was the catalyst for the project. Huntsville couple Judy and Chuck Stokes were inspired to make a difference in honor of Judy’s mom, Mary Byer Liswood, a breast cancer survivor.

“My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 58, and underwent a radical mastectomy,” Judy said. “Her strength, faith, and optimism carried her through, and she lived her life fully, completely, positively, and with a most caring heart, until the age of 105. In honor of my Momma, I wanted to make the Breast Center a hopeful place for all who walk through the doors.”

Judy had the idea for the unit enhancements during her annual mammogram.

“I came home and shared my experience with Chuck. The staff, the equipment, everything was just wonderful,” she says.

But, Judy had some ideas for “a couple of things that I thought maybe we could see tweaked.”

“They handed me two hospital gowns – one to open to the front and one to the back,” Judy shared. “Well, I thought … OK, I am not sick. Why am I in a hospital gown? Chuck and I discussed how we could give back and help make it a more patient-centered, anxiety- and stress-reducing experience. We immediately called Huntsville Hospital Foundation, and their team helped bring this dream into reality.”

Now, thanks to the Stokes’ donation, patients will be wrapped in a warm robe instead of cold, awkward hospital gowns while they await their mammogram and results at the HHW&C Breast Center – which performs more mammograms than any other mammography site in the state of Alabama.

“The Stokes’ passion and generosity will help countless women during a time that fills so many with immense anxiety and fear,” said Sarah Savage-Jones, president of Huntsville Hospital Foundation. “Every year, you worry until you get that ‘all clear’. Thanks to Judy and Chuck’s donation and vision, our Breast Center can provide a feeling of wellness and peace to the patients we serve from across North Alabama. This combines with our state-of-the-art equipment to truly improve patient lives.”

Huntsville-based CFD Research also partnered with Huntsville Hospital Foundation on the project. The company’s generous donations to the Liz Hurley Breast Cancer Fund at HHF funded the robe warmer machine, ensuring every robe is warm when it is handed to patients.

HHF thanks the Stokes, CFD Research, and all of its 2022 Ribbon Run sponsors and participants who contributed to this project that is redefining the patient experience at our local not-for-profit hospital.

To schedule your mammogram, call (256) 801-6283.

Visit huntsvillehospitalfoundation.org to learn more about Huntsville Hospital Foundation and its mission to inspire donor generosity to invest in the needs of our hospitals and improve the health of our community.

About Huntsville Hospital Foundation

Huntsville Hospital Foundation exists to provide lifesaving technology and meaningful programs that improve patient lives. The Foundation raises essential funding for not-for-profit Huntsville Hospital, Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children, and Madison Hospital through individual and corporate donations, providing more than $6 million in funding for hospital needs each year. For more information, visit huntsvillehospitalfoundation.org