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Thursday, June 11, 2009
Crowne Plaza, Warwick, RI
7:30 AM to 3 PM
The purpose of the summit is to bring together Partnership members, community members, and organizations with an interest in cancer. Each summit has speakers and workshops that highlight the work of the Partnership and bring together other partners focused on specific Partnership priorities. Topics vary from year.
The Partnership is very pleased to announce the success of the 2009 Rhode Island Cancer Summit The Burden of Cancer in Rhode Island: Partnering to Win. Over 200 people joined us at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick, RI for this event including care providers from different disciplines (medicine, nursing, chaplaincy, social work, etc), representatives from healthcare organizations and hospitals across the state, and cancer survivors at all stages. Keynote speaker Dr. Otis Brawley, Chief Medical Officer for the American Cancer Society provided our diverse audience with an enlightening and entertaining presentation of the latest data on the burden of cancer in the United States. John Fulton, PhD of the Rhode Island Department of Health updated the audience with the latest data on the burden of cancer in Rhode Island.
A panel of RI government officials rounded out the morning with an engaging discussion of access throughout the cancer continuum, from prevention and early detection to diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, and end of life care. Panelists included: David R. Gifford, MD, MPH, Director, Rhode Island Department of Health; Christopher F. Koller, Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner; Gary Alexander, Executive Office of Health and Human Services/Department of Human Services and Liz Gemski, American Cancer Society.
Before lunch, the Chairs from the Partnership’s prevention, detection & screening, treatment, palliative care, and survivorship workgroups provided updates on the implementation of the state plan to reduce cancer in Rhode Island.
The 2009 Summit concluded with three break-out sessions that introduced some of the many resources available to cancer survivors and healthcare providers. Topics included: Patient Navigation facilitated by Brian Denton, Pfizer Oncology and Todd Ellison, MSW, LCSW, The MAE Foundation; Sexuality and Intimacy facilitated by Don Dizon, MD and Diane Thompson, MSW, Women & Infants Hospital’s Program in Women’s Oncology; and Managing Finances facilitated by Donna Nesselbush, Marasco & Nesselbush, LLP.
