Patients Move for a Purpose During First Inpatient Miles for Moffitt Event

Every year, Kathi Barden, left, participates in Miles for Moffitt with Team Heart and Sole.

For the first time in Moffitt’s inpatient units, start and finish lines were drawn, a makeshift course was mapped out and volunteers filled the halls with signs of encouragement. While more than 11,5000 participants joined together in downtown Tampa, patients who could not attend Miles for Moffitt this year were able to experience the event in a different way.  

Kathi Barden, a Patient Experience liaison at Moffitt, was one of the brains behind the creation of the cancer center’s first Inpatient Miles for Moffitt.  

“We were talking about other ways we could create experiences for our inpatients,” she said. “Our Patient Experience team has had a large Miles for Moffitt team for many years, so that really inspired us to want to put this together on campus.” 

The 20th annual Miles for Moffitt race marked Barden’s 10th year participating in the race. “One year I ran to support a coworker fighting cancer, and another year I ran to support my mom after her cancer diagnosis,” Barden said.

Inspiring Our Patients

With everyone participating for their own personal reasons, with the same overall goal of supporting cancer research and finding a cure, Barden and her team wanted inpatients to be able to move for a purpose, too.

While being cheered on by volunteers, team members and loved ones, the patients walked around the course, at their own pace, receiving help if needed.

“People brought their families and friends, and when the patients walked across the finish line, they got their Miles for Moffitt medal,” Barden said.  

Around 40 volunteers supported the event, including team members from various departments within Moffitt. 

“With events like this, we often have team members like researchers who do not typically get to interact with patients face to face regularly, and this allows them to be able to meet some of the patients and see who their work is truly impacting,” Barden said.

Motivating Steps in the Halls 

One of Moffitt’s patients, Samantha Wallace, was admitted to the hospital over the weekend while dealing with an infection. After receiving treatment for breast cancer, Wallace was able to ring the bell two weeks ago. Her lifelong friend, Michele Eylward, has remained one of her biggest supporters throughout her cancer journey.  

As Wallace walked through the hospital halls during the Inpatient Miles for Moffitt event, Eylward was by her side, offering words of encouragement and cheering her on, as she always does.    

The inpatient event has inspired breast cancer patient Jamie Phillips to attend Miles for Moffitt at Benchmark International Arena next year. 

“It was an honor to be a part of this, and now we are planning to participate in the actual race for the first time next year together,” Wallace said.  

Another patient, Jamie Phillips, was also admitted into the hospital due to an unexpected infection. After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023, Phillips had to undergo several surgeries, the most recent taking place in early October.  

“As I was here in bed recovering from this infection, I kept seeing Miles for Moffitt on the news all morning,” she said. “I really wanted to be out there participating, so it was a really great surprise to be able to participate in this event inside the hospital with other patients,” Phillips said.  

Moving forward, Barden says the goal is to continue the Inpatient Miles for Moffitt every year.  

“I think the more normal you can make inpatients feel, the more they are going to feel better overall,” she explained.