Quickly forming deep connections with patients and their families is what drew Dr. Sandhya Dhanjal to oncology and hematology.
“The kind of relationship you have is very intense,” she said. “I think you go through kind of a war with the patients.”
Dhanjal, an oncologist and hematologist at the Oncology and Infusion Center in Fairfield, said working with a patient and taking a multidisciplinary approach to their illness makes the work interesting and exciting.
“I feel like a solider at war,” she said. “Sometimes I feel like we’re winning and sometimes I feel like a wounded warrior, where I go home and I’m like, ‘I lost the battle.’ It’s a deep feeling and connection with people and their struggle.”
Hartford HealthCare recently opened an oncology and infusion center at 425 Post Road in Fairfield that aligns with that mission.HHC purchased Medical Specialists of Fairfield, the private practice previously there, last January. It renovated the floor above and expanded the practice. The result is an 8,000-square-foot center that opened in mid-December. It features six medical exam rooms and 12 private infusion bays.
Dr. Peter Yu, Hartford HealthCare Cancer Institute’s physician-in-chief, said the expansion allowed the facility to have more exam and treatment rooms, as well as space for staff and a better experience for the patients. He said the center offers a variety of treatments including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, blood transfusions, hydration, therapeutic phlebotomy and injections.
Yu said HHC entered Fairfield County about two years ago. It has been looking to improve and upgrade its cancer services to the area, including recently adding three medical oncologists at St. Vincent’s Hospital.
“We anticipated continuing to expand in Fairfield County,” he said. “We don’t want patients driving long distances to come to the hospital for everything. We want to create these outpatient or ambulatory centers up and down Fairfield County.”
Essentially, Yu said, the service will be coordinated through the centralized health care system, but the delivery will be local. This, he said, will keep the quality of care high while also convenient and accessible.
