Working Together...Quarterly
Montana Cancer Control Coalition
February, 2010
Winter Edition |
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| Welcome to Working Together...Quarterly |
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It's cold and snowy across Montana and many mammals are hibernating, but not the Montana Cancer Control Coalition! Activities in cancer prevention and control abound.
The Montana Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan 2009 Annual Report has been published. The report reflects some of the progress made over the past year. Progress on CCC Plan implementation is the direct result of donated time, expertise, and resources. The MTCCC acknowledges and thanks its many volunteers, partners, and supporters.
Spring MTCCC meeting
The May 6, 2010 MTCCC meeting in Billings will be a time for all MTCCC members to provide input into updating the CCC Plan. At this meeting each Implementation Group will review their current CCC Plan progress, relevant data, and begin to reassess CCC Plan goals and objectives.
This process is a participatory model that allows the involvement of all touched by cancer, and encourages statewide, community-level participation.
The MTCCC needs all members and new partners to get involved in updating the CCC Plan. Please plan to attend.
Read through this edition of Working Together...Quarterly to learn more about what cancer control activities across Montana and upcoming ways for you to be involved. |
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| The Sanctuary, Sidney Montana (by Shelee Warner) |
Relax in the sauna. Refresh with a massage. Renew with gentle exercise or meditation. Sound like an ad for a private, high-priced Spa Resort? Welcome to The Sanctuary-a quiet spot just outside Sidney Montana where a woman facing cancer can experience a personal spa experience to relax, refresh, renew, all for free. All free due to the generosity and hard work of a few individuals.
 Several women with new cancer diagnoses sought out the companionship and support of cancer survivor Theresa Livers, Sidney, and formed a support group: Just Us Girls, Surviving (JUGS). The common bond that grew from their shared experiences turned into a common dream; to create a place where other women facing cancer could meet, or retrea. A place of peace and renewal. They began transforming an efficiency apartment at the Liver's home-first a fresh coat of paint, then new flooring, saving money to purchase a sauna. When faced with the fear of a possible 4th cancer diagnosis, Theresa realized that this idea had grown into a passion to serve other women and she resolved to finish The Sanctuary. "It became my bucket list" she says, referring to the movie about things you want to experience or accomplish before you die. As she quietly shared the group's dream with other friends in the community, new opportunities for furnishings opened and they were able to add exercise equipment and a hydro-massage table.
Members of the JUGS group continue to support The Sanctuary with the day-to-day upkeep. They sponsor "make it and take it" nights where women can connect with each other while creating jewelry to keep or sell. They maintain a guest register to track visits. In September of last fall, 15 women logged 64 visits to The Sanctuary.
This group chose to take their first-hand knowledge of what cancer diagnoses, treatment, and side effects can take away from a woman, and turn it into a blessing for others. Theresa summed it up for the group in saying, "Life isn't what we take from it, but what we give back".
For more information about The Sanctuary, visit their Facebook page "A Sanctuary for women with Cancer" or contact Theresa at (406) 488-1288 or Nicki at (406) 488-4352. |
| Updating the Montana Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan 2006-2011 (by Sue Warren) |
 The Assessment and Development Committee Announces the Cancer Control Plan Update Committee Progress:
Ginny Furshong, Carrie Strike, Cheryl Hackett, Dr. Barbara Lloyd and Sue Warren have completed an initial conference call with the Consultants from Strategic Health Concepts to begin to identify a successful framework to update our Cancer Control Plan for 2011 - 2016.
We have developed roles and responsibilities for committee members and we'll engage the Steering Committee in a Conference Call scheduled on February 17th at 3:30pm. We have a very complete list of committee members and welcome additional coalition members and survivors to complement our committee.
We will be using the 5 - R's to Revise Montana's Comprehensive Control Plan:
- Reconvene the Workgroup (Leadership Retreat on March 5th & 6th)
- Review the Available Information
- Reassess Comprehensive Cancer Control Goals and Objectives
- Recommend Strategies to achieve the objectives
- Refine Strategies and determine Resources
If you are interested in participating in this committee, please email Sue Warren . |
| Gearing up for Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month (by Terry Egan) |
| MT Cancer Control Program Regional Coordinators are gearing up with the help of community coalitions to raise awareness about the importance of colorectal cancer screening. Regional Coordinators will be promoing Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in March.
Planned activities include but are not limited to:
- public service announcements on local radio and TV stations;
- educational flyers to attach to pay checks/stubs;
- educational programs for people with Medicare;
- providing educational resources to local Chambers of Commerce members;
- activities or events focused on raising awareness of screening guidelines;
- promoting screening guidelines among employees of local businesses and organizations;
- collaboration with medical providers to provide FOBT tests to patients.
The Montana Cancer Screening Program is now offering colon cancer screening for uninsured and under-insured adults aged 50-65 who meet eligibility criteria. Screening coordinators are working with providers across Montana to enroll eligible men and women in the program.
Are you interested in participating in a community event or sponsoring an educational activity for Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month? Click on the link below to contact the Regional Coordinator in your area: MCCCP Regional Programs |
| MTCCC Leadership Update |
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NEW MCCCP STAFF! The MTCCC would like to welcome aboard Lisa Crowley, who serve as the new MTCCC Outreach Coordinator. Lisa will start officially on February 17th. Lisa brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience in chronic disease, program development and coordination, and we look forward to her leadership.
Do you have questions or ideas about the MTCCC that you haven't yet shared?
Did you know that you have representatives that will take your input to the Steering Committee?
The MTCCC Steering Committee has 3 current Members at Large. The role of these individuals is to bring input from the membership to the Steering Committee and communicate Steering Committee activities to the MTCCC general membership. Please feel free to contact any of the current Members at Large to ensure that your voice is heard! Betsy Smith, Art McDonald, Debra Chibroski
NEW IMPLEMENTATION GROUP CHAIRS!
The Early Detection Implementation Team would like to congratulate Dr. Natalie Gonzales as she takes on the role at EDIT Chair.
Congratulations as well, to Tracy Boehm, for accepting the role of Chair for the Communications Committee.
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| The Fall Survivorship Symposium (by Lisa O'Brien) |
Survivorship Care Plans in Montana: Where Do I Go From Here?
The MTCCC Fall symposium was well received according to conference evaluation reports. 81 people attended the Fall symposium in Helena on November 5, 2009. Speakers presented on topics normally covered in cancer survivorship care plans. Dr. Scott Baker from Seattle Cancer Care Alliance joined us as the keynote speaker. Dr. Baker gave a good overview of cancer survivorship, what a survivorship care plan is and how a survivorship care plans are used.
The evaluations indicated that the attendees enjoyed the facilities and the way that the symposium was organized and timed. As always, we would love to see more even more time for peer interaction. The communication of the groups that were able to meet the evening before was greatly enriched by meeting face to face and they had fun! I would encourage anyone who can spend the extra time to meet face to face, whether it be the evening before, an early breakfast, or over lunch.
Thank you to everyone who attended and who planned this successful symposium. The Quality of Life and Survivorship Team is now moving forward to identify, brand and encourage the use of a Survivorship Care Plan template for cancer survivors in our state. The hope is that a tool that is consistent across the State will improve health care and quality of life for cancer survivors. |
| Promoting Cancer Screening for Women with Disabilites (by Meg Ann Traci) |
The Montana Disability and Health Program (MTDH)-- a partnership of the Montana DPHHS and the UM Rural Institute on Disabilities-- actively participates in the MTCCC as a partnering agency to help reduce the burden of cancer in Montana.
MTDH spent the past year promoting cancer screenings for women with disabilities to highlight The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) qualitative study that explored the barriers to breast cancer screening for women who have physical disabilities. Barriers identified included: lack of perceived susceptibility, preoccupation with other health issues, not knowing where to go for accessible screening, difficulty with positioning, inaccessible facilities and equipment, and provider knowledge and attitudes (Thierry 2004). Women with disabilities also identified the lack of health promotion messages and materials that reflect their unique needs as problematic and requested that CDC address this issue.
As a result of this study, CDC developed The Right To Know campaign, a family of health promotion materials designed to increase awareness of breast cancer among women with physical disabilities and encourage these women to get screened. (The Right To Know materials, audio-recordings and transcripts are available at: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/women/righttoknow the cdc.gov homepage also features Information for Women with Disabilities about Breast Cancer )
Montana is one of four states nationwide funded to implement The Right To Know campaign. Since March 2009, MTDH has been working with Montana's Centers for Independent Living and other state partners to promote the campaign statewide. One of the efforts includes the development of a multi-media exhibit titled, Every Woman Matters: Portraits of Montana Women Living with Disabilities (EWM).
The EWM exhibit was developed by community partners and features black and white portraits (36"x 48" canvas prints) of 12 Montana women with physical disabilities - some of them breast cancer survivors, all of them role models and advocates. The portraits, taken by internationally acclaimed portrait photographer Steven Begleiter, are augmented by a multimedia video project produced by University of Montana School of Journalism students and Professor Jeremy Lurgio. A grant from Susan G. Komen for the Cure's Montana Affiliate supported portrait production. The event premiered in Missoula in March and traveled to Helena in May. The exhibit was displayed at the September Montana Public Health Conference and is on display in Great Falls at The History Museum through the month of January. Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow is hosting the exhibit in March in Billings, Montana (location to be announced). The Every Woman Matters Photos and video recordings are available at:www.everywomanmatters.info
Additionally, MTDH and the Centers for Independent Living conducted a statewide evaluation of mammography centers and summarized the results in the Montana Mammography Directory, available online here. Information in the directory is geared to help women plan for a successful mammogram. For women with disabilities, it outlines areas for which they may need to request specific accommodations, such as adjustable height-specific mammography machines, accessible exam rooms to accommodate a wheelchair, and/or additional support staff.
MTDH recognizes that breast cancer is a major public health concern for all women, including women with disabilities and it is important to increase awareness of breast cancer among women with physical disabilities and encourage them to be screened. | |
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