Coda Comfort Crew

After years of raising funds and awareness for the cause, we wanted a more direct impact on cancer patients. As medical students, we had the chance to interact with cancer patients, healthcare professionals and our community, and were able to identify an area of need.

Chemotherapy treatments typically last several hours at a time and often cause side effects, including nausea and fatigue. Due to these factors, patients need something to take their minds off their treatments.

Since the pandemic, many restrictions have been put in place, and several are still in effect in the oncology department, for good reason. The downside is that patients are no longer able to have a loved one by their side to support them during their treatments.

We decided to address this issue by creating the Coda Comfort Crew, a free service that provides company, comfort and entertainment to patients undergoing chemotherapy.

After hours upon hours of hard work, we were finally ready to launch this service. In June of 2024, we trained our first cohort of volunteers, who were eager to start making a difference in the lives of cancer patients.

Since then, we recruit a new set of volunteers every trimester and train them to provide psychosocial support, enabling them to interact with patients more effectively. They also have access to tablets with streaming services, along with headphones, games, comfort items and more, allowing them to meet various patient needs.

Every month, our team of trained volunteers accumulate over a hundred hours of company for patients undergoing chemotherapy. We've received overwhelmingly positive feedback from patients and staff, who have expressed their gratitude for the service.

Additionally, we introduce the youth to the healthcare field, with the hope that their first interactions with patients will spark a desire to pursue a career in healthcare. Incorporating volunteer work into their weekly schedules fosters a sense of community engagement, which is reinforced year after year, ultimately creating a generation of young adults dedicated to the common good.

The Coda Comfort Crew requires constant work and funding to continue its operations. Your contribution will help us maintain and expand our services, allowing us to reach more patients and provide them with the comfort they need.

If you would like to support our cause, please consider making a donation.

Alternatively, you can join our team of volunteers by filling out this form.