Wellness House recently spoke with Dr. Weng about the importance of our partnership with Maryland Oncology Hematology. “The partnership between the Wellness House and Maryland Oncology Hematology in Annapolis is really one of the highlights of our relationship with our community. The Wellness House represents a tremendous resource for the community and the patients that we serve,” says Dr. David Weng of Maryland Oncology Hematology (MOH).
The proud son of two immigrant parents, whose mother arrived in the United States from France by way of Ellis Island, Dr. David Weng lived in several states before settling in the area. He was born in Chicago, but grew up in Michigan, where he left to attend Harvard in Boston and earn his bachelor’s degree in biochemical sciences. His education continued, along with his travels, to Maryland where he earned his M.D. and Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He went on to a fellowship at the National Institutes of Health with a focus on research in new cancer therapies.
He later joined the staff at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, where he spent 8 years as a breast cancer specialist and was involved in clinical and laboratory research. He found that he really enjoyed doing research on behalf of his patients to help them find new options for care. Dr. Weng saw how he could make an even greater impact with his patients, learning more about cancer research and gaining expertise for developing new therapies.
Around 2014 he returned to Maryland to practice oncology and joined the group of doctors, nurses, and staff that comprise MOH. When asked what he enjoys about his profession, he described his appreciation for being a member of a team of doctors committed to quality of care and having the best cancer therapies available for patients. He takes pride in taking care of each patient as a whole person with an emphasis on the impact it has on their family. As he describes, that is where Wellness House enters the picture.
Additionally, he states, “What Wellness House has that isn’t easily available in a lot of other areas is this focus on building a personal community for a patient, because that’s really disrupted by any disease condition. People feel very isolated because of all the issues that occur, impacting their physical, mental and social health, and family relationships,” says Dr. Weng.
He goes on to explain how Wellness House removes the financial barriers that sometimes exist to prevent access to community resources and explains, “The fact that patients can participate in the services of Wellness House without any financial cost is really tremendous because one of the most difficult things about any disease is the strain on the financial health of a family, including the disruption of their work, as well as the new charges and bills that come as a result of all the care that is needed. Cancer can cost individuals tens of thousands of dollars out-of-pocket, depending on insurance coverage. This leaves many families struggling to pay medical bills with little money left over to invest in palliative care and wellness services that are so important to a patient’s recovery.”
Reducing the anxiety about financial costs of the palliative care and wellness services is part of feeling comfortable using the service. Wellness House also responds to wherever the need is, providing a full spectrum of services, wherever someone is on their cancer journey.
Dr. David Weng of Maryland Oncology Hematology specializes in oncology and earned his medical and Ph.D. degrees from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He grew up in Michigan, the proud son of two immigrant parents, and became involved in oncology, initially to focus on developing new cancer therapies. He is happily married with 5 teenagers, including triplets.