Past Events

Collaboration in Cancer Control: Who are Our Partners? Annual Meeting

Collaboration in Cancer Control: Who are Our Partners?

Annual Meeting

Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023

Collaboration in Cancer Control: Who Are Our Partners? was the theme of the Connecticut Partnership’s 18th Annual Meeting. Dr. Andrew L. Salner, a radiation oncologist and medical director of the Hartford HealthCare Cancer Institute at Hartford Hospital and its Helen & Harry Gray Cancer Center served as emcee of the program. Close to 100 people attended, representing over 50 organizations from around the state. The program was held at the Sheraton in Rocky Hill, the program featured a presentation delivered via Zoom by Lisa C. Richardson, MD, MPH. She is the director of the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control (DCPC), the largest unit within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. As director of DCPC, she works with partners at the national, state, and local levels to break down barriers to good health and create opportunities for everyone to live long and healthy lives. A medical oncologist by training, she has authored or co-authored more than 150 peer-reviewed journal articles examining multi-sectoral approaches to improving cancer care access, delivery, and outcomes. CLICK TO DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION

She was followed by Dr. Jeffrey Hine (See Slides) who became the inaugural Chief Diversity Officer for the University of Connecticut Health System in June 2022. He began his medical career in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, deploying as a battalion surgeon during operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He completed a fellowship in Gynecologic Oncology at The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center of Georgetown University Medical Center in 1995. He has held teaching positions at Texas A&M College of Medicine, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Uniformed Services University for the Health Sciences, Morehouse School of Medicine, and is currently at The University of Connecticut School of Medicine. Hines earned a Bachelor of Science from Brown in 1983 and an M.D. from the Warren Alpert Medical School in 1986.

Next was a talk by Dr. Kimberly Daly, DNP, APRN, FNP-C who is the Northeast Regional Medical Director, Merck addressing HPV-related cancers, vaccination rates and disparities.

Dr. Daly is a Family Nurse Practitioner with more than twenty years of healthcare experience. She received her Doctorate of Nursing Practice and Master of Science Nursing from the University of Massachusetts. She has been a key presenter at various health conferences and has extensive experience in leadership, management, policy development, patient advocacy, program development, and legislative outreach. She is the former President-elect for the New England College Health Association and Vice President for the Massachusetts Coalition for Nurse Practitioners.

Dr. Salner then moderated a panel addressing questions of access barriers and facilitators. The five panelists represented local health departments, oral health providers, cancer centers,  pharmacy and community health centers.

Dr. Lacey Whitmire is a board-certified internist and pediatrician, practicing primary care in an urban underserved community in New Haven, CT. She attended medical school at USCF, and completed med/peds residency training at Yale New Haven. Dr. Whitmire had worked in community and academic settings to increase community engagement in primary care. For the past two years, she has served as the director of population health at Fair Haven Community Health Care, an FQHC in New Haven, CT. She is interested in community-engaged population health initiatives, especially those that involve pediatric populations and adult cancer screening and prevention.

Marissa Salvo, PharmD, BCACP, FCCP, FCPA is an Associate Clinical Professor of Pharmacy Practice at the UConn School of Pharmacy. She teaches in the Pharmacy Communications, Patient Assessment, and Endocrine module courses, and serves as chair of the School’s Curriculum and Curricular Assessment Committee. Dr. Salvo provides clinical pharmacy services at UConn Health within the outpatient Internal Medicine clinic in Farmington, CT. Dr. Salvo is a Board-Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist and Fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy as well as the Connecticut Pharmacists Association. She obtained her Doctor of Pharmacy degree with a minor in Leadership Studies from the University of Rhode Island.

Rosa E. Pelaez-Shelton, D.D.S., M.D.S. is a Board-Certified Pediatric Dentist currently holding the position of Assistant Professor in the Division of Pediatric Dentistry at the University of Connecticut. After receiving her B.S. and D.D.S. degrees from Universidad Francisco Marroquin in her native Guatemala City, she completed a two-year Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency program at the University of Connecticut Health Center. She continued her education at Rutgers University in New Jersey where she completed a two-year Pediatric Dentistry residency program and also received a Master of Dental Science.

Stephanie Hynes, Community Health Worker at the Northeast District Department of Health, works with the community to facilitate health promotion and disease prevention education campaigns. Her public health career began with COVID prevention as a contact tracer and vaccination assistant and became a Community Health Worker in October 2022. She had an active role in the Community Health Needs Assessment that was recently completed and is currently in the process of pursuing her bachelor’s degree in public health.

Gean Brown, MSN, RN, OCN, CNML, Gean Brown, MSN, RN, OCN, CMNL is the Clinical Program Manager for Smilow at Bridgeport Surgical Oncology and Breast Center in Bridgeport Connecticut.   An oncology nurse for close to twenty-five years, Gean has vast experience in all aspects of cancer care ranging from outreach and screening to treatment.  She was instrumental in developing a lung cancer screening program in 2012 at an area community hospital and led the program as a Thoracic Nurse Navigator and then Clinical Manager.  During this time Gean worked along with the Lung Cancer Alliance to advocate for lung cancer screening to gain approval by CMS to be paid for as part of health screening, which was approved in 2015.

The program concluded with breakout sessions over a working lunch. Members chose one of four focus areas: HPV Vaccination, Oral Health, Lung Cancer Screening and Early Onset Cancer Survivorship. Reports from the groups and the next steps will be shared in the January Partnership newsletter.

LGBTQ+ Patient-Centered Cultural Competency Training

This is a  two-part online program presented by Layne Gianakos, program coordinator for the newly formed Office of Health Equity Research within the Equity Research and Innovation Center at Yale School of Medicine.. His passion for comprehensive LGBTQIA+ medical care and community assistance led him to work for Anchor Health Initiative, a non-profit LGBTQIA+ primary care organization where he pioneered a comprehensive patient-centered case management program for members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Two one- hour zoom sessions Tuesday, April 25th and Thursday, May 4th at noon, for 1 hour each.

Topic: LGBTQ+ Cultural Competency, Part 1
Date: Apr 25, 2023
https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/Dfp4L_ATQJnftW-I_Pqcyjutx3m9ciu8QU9U4TUmpJ1Ij3Al8nFkQL_VE_B0AZPJ.nChhxXQxMcdFyNSu
Passcode: 51Sx#93z

Topic: LGBTQIA+ Healthcare setting training session, Part 2
Date: May 4, 2023
https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/jC2PUblK2DFMakW7WeolsvIvAekWwVmFPOhOYdLyVzYYHY3TJ0vPUZFMooNZrKy3.cD-EMIwxFhQMFpT_
Passcode: 209k81f$

HPV Vaccination: Progress and Challenges Pond House, West Hartford

The Connecticut Cancer Partnership’s HPV Vaccination Workgroup invites you to attend a free summit highlighting the Progress and Challenges of HPV Vaccination. The morning meeting will be held in person at the Pond House in West Hartford, on the grounds of the beautiful Elizabeth Park. Morning refreshments will be served.

Topics to be covered include an overview of HPV-related cancers, current rates of vaccination in the state, quality improvement project ideas, and the roles of dental health practitioners and of school-based health centers.

2022 Annual Meeting Overview

The 17th Annual Meeting of the Connecticut Cancer Partnership was held, via Zoom, on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022. The title Connecticut Cancer Partnership Celebrating 20 Years: Renewed, Refreshed, and Ready to Go! reflected that CCP is coming out of a period of dormancy and is eager to reconvene cancer control partners in the work of reducing the burden of cancer in Connecticut.

Seven speakers covered topics including the history of the 20-year-old coalition, the CDC funding focus, the importance and approach of evaluation throughout the five-year funding cycle, the overarching theme of cancer disparities in Connecticut, initiatives to address health equity through advocacy for policy, systems, and environmental change, national resources available to support state cancer coalitions, an introduction to the state’s latest Cancer Plan,  and evidence-based interventions addressing strategies in the new Plan.

PowerPoint presentations are linked below. |  Watch the Zoom video here.

The CCP looks forward to creating workgroups to address Cancer Plan strategies in 2023.

Connecticut Cancer Partnership Celebrating 20 Years: Renewed, Refreshed, and Ready to Go! 

Agenda

10:00  Welcome, Introductions, Partnership Overview-Lucinda Hogarty, MPH, Executive Director of the CCP

  • Who’s Who: Steering Group and Staff
  • History

10:15  CDC Focus–Chioma Ogazi, DVM, MS, RN, CT DPH POWERPOINT LINK

10:25  Evaluation— Amy Griffin, Director, Health Evaluation Initiatives, The Consultation Center at Yale POWERPOINT LINK

10:25 Highlight on Cancer Disparities-Lou Gonsalves, Ph.D., CT DPH, Tumor Registry POWERPOINT LINK

10:35 Policy, Systems, and Environment/Advocacy Update: Recent Successes and Upcoming Initiatives-Natalie Shurtleff, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network – POWERPOINT LINK

10:45 Connecticut’s New Cancer Plan in BriefGoals at A Glance– Lucinda Hogarty POWERPOINT LINK

10:55 National Connections:  Comprehensive Cancer Control National Partnership, Sarah Shafir, MPH, Chair of CCCNP, American Cancer Society, – POWERPOINT LINK

11:00 Using Strategies that Work: Evidence-Based Interventions and Connecticut’s New Cancer Plan, Aubrey Villalobos, DrPh, Med, NIH, Division of Cancer Control. Dr. Villalobos will:

  • Define and identify evidence-based interventions (EBIs)
  • Explain how implementation science advances cancer control
  • Describe how to select, adapt, and evaluate EBIs related to priority strategies in the Connecticut Cancer Plan, 2021-2026

POWERPOINT LINK

11:40  What is a CCP workgroup and how do they work for you?

Next steps

12 Noon  Adjourn

Update in lung Screening

Cancer Screening Logo - animation of lunch inside an colorful image background

April 29, 2022
8:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M.
Water’s Edge Resort and Spa
Westbrook, CT

The CT Cancer Partnership presents

Update in Lung Cancer Screening

Come hear about the latest advancements in lung cancer screening. Review the new guidelines for screening, shared decision-making, and how and when to make a referral for screening.

In-person and virtual attendance is available. Intended audience is PCPs and staff.

Speakers:

  • Polly Sather, APRN, Yale New Haven Health
  • James Carroll, MD, Midstate Medical Center
  • Ilana Richman, MD, Yale Medicine
  • Thomas Farquhar, MD, Hartford HealthCare

Registration for this free event is required.
Breakfast and lunch will be provided.

https://hhchealth.cloud-cme.com/LungCancerScreening2022

CME are available. Hartford HealthCare is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Physicians: Hartford HealthCare designates this activity for a maximum of 4 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Nurses: This activity is designated for a maximum of 4 ANCC contact hours.

Other Learners: All other learners will receive a Certificate of Participation. Consult your professional licensing board regarding the applicability and acceptance of certificates of participation for educational activities certified for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from organizations accredited by Joint Accreditation for Interprofessional Continuing Education.