This one day experiential workshop provides an overview of a novel counseling intervention for patients with advanced cancer, entitled “Meaning Centered Psychotherapy”. Participants will be introduced to the topics of meaning and spirituality as they relate to cancer care and the experience of patients with cancer. The basic concepts of Meaning Centered Psychotherapy will then be described. Meaning Centered Psychotherapy is based on the concepts of meaning as derived from the work of Viktor Frankl, M.D. and adapted for use in cancer populations by our team at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Two forms of Meaning Centered Psychotherapy have been developed: Meaning Centered Group Psychotherapy (8 weekly 1 ½ hour sessions; Individual Meaning Centered Psychotherapy (7 weekly 1 hour sessions). Both interventions are manualized and randomized controlled trials are currently being conducted. Preliminary data from these studies will be presented as well. During the workshop participants will have the opportunity to participate in experiential exercises utilized in Meaning Centered Psychotherapy. In addition, a detailed description of the intervention and the content of each session will be provided. Newer adaptations of Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy for breast cancer survivors, Caregivers, bereavement, and cultural adaptation for Chines and Spanish speaking populations will be discussed.
Additionally we will discuss the interaction of research and clinical work and possibilities of the application of research findings into clinical routine work.
The main part of the workshop is dedicated to the discussion of the research projects or ideas of the workshop participants. Each participant will be encouraged to give a short presentation (3-5 slides) on an own planned or on-going study.
Presentations will be conducted with humour and in an interactive fashion drawing on the presenters’ substantial research experience. All facilitators have extensive publication records in psychosocial cancer research and have learned about pitfalls in research from their own experience. Presentations will include case studies/real world examples and how-to-do suggestions
Please note that the workshop focuses solely on quantitative research methods.
Health psychology is based on the „bio-psycho-social model“, that includes effects of psychological and social factors on disease risk, prevention, treatment compliance, quality of life and many other essential aspects connected with wellbeing and self-efficacy. Psychoneuroimmunology provides an understanding of fundamental mechanism involved in the bio-psycho-social model meaning that psychological and social factors influence disease processes via two main mechanisms: psychosocial processes (individual differences like optimism, depression or resources concerning coping and social support…) and health behaviors (sleep, alcohol, sports, relaxation exercises…). In the last decades the knowledge about the complexity of the relationship between psychosocial distress and immune regulation in the context of the cancer disease has increased and therefore the integration of the psycho-neuro-immunological concept in psychological interventions for patients with cancer has great potential.
This workshop will be split into two parts: the first part of this workshop will provide an overview (basics) of the concept of psychoneuroimmunology and the mind-body connection.
The second part will go deeper into the main elements of methods relating to the PNI concepts integrated in psychosocial interventions for cancer patients and in research questions.
The workshop is open to clinicians from all professions caring for cancer patients and young researchers, who are interested or working in the field of Psychoneuroimmunology and who consider researching in this area.
In the first part of the workshop (morning session):
During this 2 day workshop, presenters will give short methodological impulse lectures on
Additionally we will discuss the interaction of research and clinical work and possibilities of the application of research findings into clinical routine work.
The main part of the workshop is dedicated to the discussion of the research projects or ideas of the workshop participants. Each participant will be encouraged to give a short presentation (3-5 slides) on an own planned or on-going study.
Presentations will be conducted with humour and in an interactive fashion drawing on the presenters’ substantial research experience. All facilitators have extensive publication records in psychosocial cancer research and have learned about pitfalls in research from their own experience. Presentations will include case studies/real world examples and how-to-do suggestions
Please note that the workshop focuses solely on quantitative research methods.
Speakers: Lynne Padgett, PhD
Many unanswered questions challenge both research and care delivery in oncology related psychosocial distress. What are the most efficient assessments of distress? How does distress screening lead to improved clinical outcomes? What are current and future data harmonization efforts for measuring distress? What unique research opportunities exist due to the implementation of Commission on Cancer standards? How might these efforts improve clinical outcomes? Do successful models of assessment and care delivery translate across disease and symptom burden?
This half-day collaborative workshop provides participants the opportunity to actively engage in the development of research priorities for measuring and implementing psychosocial distress screening. Experts from diverse fields including measurement and assessment, health informatics, integrative data analysis, health services research, primary care, and basic social sciences will provide brief presentations on how their field can inform efforts to advance the effectiveness of distress screening. These brief presentations will be interspersed with facilitated group discussions to highlight research opportunities and intersections to improve clinical outcomes. The goal of the workshop is for participants and presenters to contribute to the development of a blueprint for the next generation of research priorities and opportunities to build on.
Researchers, clinicians and evaluators of all disciplines who are interested in contributing to a designed to outline a comprehensive research agenda in the field of oncology-related psychosocial distress in the context of oncology and palliative care. Contributions from the fields of clinical research, health services research, dissemination and implementation, quality improvement, informatics, communication/decision-making, and research design (e.g., measurement and analysis) are encouraged to attend and contribute. The workshop is suitable for students and professionals at all career stages.
Learning Objectives
Part 1: Background for psychotherapies for elders and a description of the CARE Model with presentation of pilot results from 65 patients.
Part 2: Presentation of the manual and the content of each session with role play to illustrate how to conduct the key sessions. Innovations and other formats for delivery will be discussed, as well as opportunities for collaboration.
Workshop Objectives:
Speakers: Andrea Patenaude PhD, Joanna Breyer PhD, Lori Wiener PhD and Mary Jo Kupst PhD
Pediatric psycho-oncologists, researchers and pediatric oncologists will benefit from our lively review of best practices in working with children, adolescents and young adults with cancer, their parents, and siblings. The experienced presenters will discuss the provision of emotional and social support from diagnosis through treatment initiation and maintenance, transition home, survivorship and end of life care. Incorporated in the session will be mini- workshops offering interactive learning and initial training in evidence-based interventions in pediatric psycho-oncology. We will also offer small group discussion of challenging cases and ethical dilemmas. The workshop will also focus on use of fantasy play with children with cancer. We will also address providing support for families from rural or distant home communities, including international families. Research will support all presentations and we will discuss the challenges of integrating research and clinical careers and help attendees consider ways to begin to organize research on topics of clinical relevance.
Participants will be helped to learn interventions to bring to their home settings to enhance clinical care of their patients and self-care and career enhancement for professionals working in this exciting, but often stressful field. A list of useful references and resources (books, videos, articles, workbooks, games, online links.) will provide continuing access to state-of-the-art information for use with families and to address interests of providers. Emphasis will be on productive, interactive discussion and hands-on learning.
Workshop Objectives:
Gentle Yoga for Wellness and Self-Care
Give your whole self the gift of nourishment from the inside out. Drawing upon yogic techniques for self-care and stress reduction, this class will help you tap into your body's natural capacity for renewal and rejuvenation, deepen your sense of calm, and enliven your essential vitality. We will practice gentle and mindful movement, healing breathwork, delicious guided relaxation, and balancing meditation. Everybody welcome.This plenary presentation will provide an overview of the 2013 Institute of Medicine (IOM) Report on “Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis,” with a focus on its recommendations related to patient-centered care. The report provided a clarion call for critical issues facing the cancer care delivery system, building on IOM prior reports, including those on survivorship care and psychosocial care. In the time since the report release, various entities have responded to the report recommendations, and those related to patient-centered care will be highlighted in this presentation. The role of professional organizations, such as IPOS and APOS will be discussed.
11:25 (20 mins) S1-3: Putting Peer Support Online: The Importance of Internet Literacy, Dr Stephen Lepore, Professor of Public Health and Director of Social and Behavioral Health Interventions Laboratory, Temple University, USA
Stephen will present data from an online breast cancer support intervention which shows a positive relationship between internet literacy and improvements in symptoms of depression and anxiety.
The Early Career Professionals in Psycho-oncology (ECPP) SIG is an inter-disciplinary group dedicated to heightening awareness of, and advocating for, issues of particular importance to ECPPs. This meeting will involve a review of activities of the past year and brainstorming ideas for the upcoming year. It will be an excellent opportunity for networking and to become actively involved in the group and its activities. New members welcome!
The International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) Human Rights Task Force has been working since 2008 to raise awareness and support within IPOS and the IPOS Federation for the relevance of Psychosocial Cancer Care as a Human Rights issue. We seek to advocate for this issue internationally and nationally through existing Human Rights laws, in a fashion similar to what has been done by the organized palliative care movement. In November 2014 at the World Congress of Psycho-oncology in Lisbon, Portugal, the IPOS Board endorsed the “Lisbon Declaration: Psychosocial Cancer Care as a Human Right”. In this session we will discuss psychosocial care as a human rights issue, the challenges and opportunities in different contexts, and how to move forward a declaration towards its implementation into clinical practice globally.
Chair: Luzia Travado PhD, IPOS President; Champalimaud Cancer Center, Lisbon, Portugal
Discussant: Michelle Fingeret PhD, APOS President; University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston TX, USA
Speakers:William Breitbart MD:
The IPOS Lisbon Declaration of Psychosocial care as a Human Rights Issue
Dr. Breitbart, Chairman, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, is chair of the IPOS Human Rights Task Force. He will describe the details of the Lisbon Declaration and the plan for dissemination and creation of an international community of supporters from individuals, organizations and advocacy groups globally.
Andrea Patenaude, PhD: Defining psychosocial care as a human right for children with cancer: Illustration of challenges at the extremes
Dr. Patenaude, Director of Psychology Research and Clinical Services, Center for Cancer Genetics and Prevention, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston MA USA, is member of IPOS Human Rights Task Force, will describe ongoing human rights challenges in Africa and worldwide facing children with cancer and their parents.
In many parts of the world it remains standard to deny children with cancer the right to know what their diagnosis is, what the treatments are they will receive and what their current status and likely outcome of their cancer will be. Part of the imperative for children with cancer to receive concurrent psychosocial care involves their need to have a caring, informed, trusted adult with whom they can discuss their feelings and fears about being ill, having cancer and enduring cancer treatment and about possible separation from family members and peers. Beyond the right to accurate medical information there are many examples of challenges to the ethical care of children with cancer. In Kenya, there are repeated reports of the detention of children with cancer in hospital after they have completed treatment, often without the comforting presence of their parents or much attention from hospital staff, because their parents have been unable to pay the hospital bill. This represents an extreme denial of human rights to both children and parents. In more developed countries, less extreme but important ethical issues arise in the psychosocial care of children with cancer about how to define minimal, essential services which should be available to all children with cancer. We will discuss these ethical challenges for pediatric cancer patients and their family members and the importance of universal psychosocial care for children enduring the stresses of cancer.
Lea Baider PhD: Cancer Care: Human Rights within the Cultural and Religious Beliefs of the Middle East
Dr. Baider, is Full Professor Health Psychology, Director Psychosocial Department at Assuta Medical Center,Tel-Aviv, Israel. As a member of the IPOS Human Rights Task Force she will discuss specific Human Rights challenges for women in the Middle east with cancer and their ability to receive supportive cancer care.
Human Rights ethics now face the increasingly relevant challenge of pursuing how to handle conflicts that are deeply embedded in diverse cultural and religious outlooks on life and death. Health care is rife with cultural differences and potential conflicts that must be considered in order to provide effective psychosocial care.. The most intimate events of life - reproduction, birth and death - draw us into the health care system and expose the most fundamental attitudes, moral values and beliefs. Religion, and systems of beliefs also directly affect psychological and physical health, for they influence coping strategies, social and family behaviour, and health attitudes. As with the Middle East, many societies are becoming increasingly multi ethnic, and multicultural. The family system of beliefs and health rituals in the Muslim countries, may appear "unscientific" and contradictory in comparison to the "evidence-based" western medical care. There is then, a risk of misunderstanding and conflict, particularly when Human Rights are totally ingrained with traditional norms of behaviour, and within the society traditional cultural and religious values.
Luigi Grassi, MD: Psychosocial care as a Human Rights Issue Around the World: the IPOS Federation perspective
***Daisuke Fujisawa MD PhD (Japan) will be presenting in place of Luigi Grassi MD
Psychological distress, anxiety and anguish, helplessness-hopelessness conditions and depression, difficulty in coping and adjustment affect at least 30% of cancer patients. Furthermore, psychosocial needs (including feeling of meaninglessness, lack of purpose, dependency, loss of social role functioning, feeling a burden to others) are common but, extremely frequently, unexplored and unmet in cancer settings. These aspects are reported in all the phases of cancer, with particular reference to palliative care. The main consequence of this situation is a negative impact on quality life, on the sense of self and on the perception of one’s own dignity, as the whole of physical, psychological, social, and spiritual/ existential issues. Many of the statements related to human rights declaration in mental health, such as the right to be treated with dignity as a human being; the right of everyone to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; and the right to have to psychosocial services and psychosocial intervention in the event of sickness, are also part of psychosocial oncology programs in many different parts of the world. One of the roles of the federation of psych-oncology societies is to help those countries where psychosocial oncology is less developed and psychosocial needs of cancer patients and their families not explored and/or not addressed.
Stephen R Connor PhD: The Next Steps: Implementing Declarations into Practical Clinical Care Changes Globally- The Palliative Care WHO Experience
Dr. Connor is Senior Fellow to Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance (WHPCA), and Member of the new WHO Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Palliative and Long Term Care. He has worked in hospice and palliative care for the past 38 years as a licensed clinical psychologist, researcher, executive, advocate, consultant, educator, and author. He is also an international palliative care consultant to the (Soros) Open Society Foundations.
Connor will describe the experience of the palliative care field in moving Human Rights advocacy from “Declarations” to practical clinical implementation globally. The session will draw parallels between the experience of the international palliative care community’s advocacy efforts to advance palliative care globally and the IPOS’s efforts to advance psychosocial cancer care as a human rights issue.
Like IPOS the WHPCA’s advocacy began with a Seoul declaration in 2005 calling access to palliative care a human right. The WHPCA emerged as an alliance of national and regional hospice and palliative care associations after the Seoul meeting of the Asia Pacific Hospice Network and was formalized as a UK charity in 2009. A series of global summits and further declarations on palliative care (including the EAPC/IAHPC Prague Charter “Palliative Care as a Human Right”) were held. Work began to create a stronger international voice for palliative care and WHPCA was admitted into official relations with WHO in 2012.
From 2011 to 2014 the global palliative care community, working with Human Rights Watch, pushed to have a stand-alone resolution brought before the World Health Assembly (WHA). In May of 2014 the WHA unanimously passed a resolution calling on member states to “Strengthen Palliative Care as a Component of Comprehensive Care Throughout the Life Course.” The resolution was based on a report from WHO that used the Global Atlas of Palliative Care at the End of Life, a joint WHO/WHPCA publication and calls on countries to use a public health approach to advancing palliative care in policy, education, medicines availability, and implementation. Implementation of the resolution has recently begun and will be described.
...Join us as we cruise along the Potomac in the exquisite glass-enclosed Odyssey River Cruise. View historic landmarks through the crystal clear glass or from the observation deck around the perimeter of the ship. The Odyssey cruises north, and the Georgetown waterfront and Lincoln Memorial are among the most beautiful attractions at night.
Schedule:
6:30 PM - Buses depart from the Marriott Marquis Washington
7:00 PM – Dock Departure
7:00 – 10:00 pm – Dinner Cruise
10:00 pm – Buses depart for the Marriott Marquis Washington
Attire: For women, cocktail wear, a dress or dressy-casual attire is appropriate. For men, collared shirts and dress pants are recommended. Nice, designer jeans are acceptable. However, casual jeans, t-shirts, athletic shoes or flip flops are discouraged.
Cost: $150 per person (Price includes dinner, live music, complimentary beer and wine)
The Spirituality SIG is an inter-disciplinary group dedicated to understanding the religious and spiritual needs of cancer patients and their families. The meeting will review activities of the previous year, brainstorm ideas for the upcoming year, and provide time for networking. New members strongly welcomed!
We are pleased to announce that IPOS Early Career Psycho-oncology Professionals Committee is organizing 5 minute oral presentations opportunities for early career professionals. The aim of this event is to enable early career psycho-oncology professionals to present and share their work with the audience.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE?You are eligible if:
In this Town Hall Plenary session, Cokie Roberts (Journalist, Author, Breast Cancer Survivor) will moderate a discussion with palliative care experts that will cover goals of palliative care through the lifespan, current research that has informed changes in practice, barriers to implementing change, and innovative responses to barriers to change around the globe.
Speakers for this plenary include Jamie von Roenn, Dr. Stein Kaasa, Joanne Wolfe, Irene Higginson
Dr. Joanne Wolfe:
Dr. Joanne Wolfe is the Chief of the Division of Pediatric Palliative Care in the Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) and the Director of Palliative Care at Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH), and is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. She holds an MD degree (1990) from Harvard Medical School and an MPH (1998) from the Harvard School of Public Health. The Pediatric Advanced Care Team (PACT), the palliative care service which she directs, received a 2001 Citation of Honor from the American Hospital Association’s Circle of Life Awards program for its innovative approach to caring for children with life-threatening illness.
Dr. Wolfe developed the first interdisciplinary pediatric palliative care fellowship program in North America. She co-developed the Pediatric Track of the Program for Palliative Care Education and Practice a continuing medical education course offered through the Harvard Center for Palliative Care. She is also a co-investigator on the EPEC-Pediatrics Project, an on-line and face-to-face curriculum which aims to enhance primary pediatric palliative care knowledge, skills and behaviors among pediatric clinicians and subspecialists.
Dr Wolfe’s research is focused on easing suffering and promoting wellbeing in children with serious illness and their families. She co-directs an emerging pediatric palliative care research network, “Peppercorn”. Dr Wolfe was the recipient of the 2013 American Cancer Society’s Pathfinder in Palliative Care Award and the 2014 AAHPM Award for Excellence in Scientific Research.
Professor Irene J Higginson OBE:
Irene Higginson qualified in medicine from Nottingham University and has worked in wide ranging medical and university positions, including radiotherapy and oncology, in-patient and home hospice care, the Department of Health (England), and various universities. She is dual-trained in palliative medicine and public health medicine. She has developed and validated two outcome measures both freely available and used widely in palliative care: the Support Team Assessment Schedule and the Palliative care Outcome Scale (see www.pos-pal.org). She is Director of the Cicely Saunders Institute, at King’s College London, the world’s first purpose-built Institute of palliative care, integrating research, education, clinical services and support and information. Prof. Higginson is an NIHR Senior Investigator and was in 2013 awarded Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences, for her contribution to the field. She has several active research programmes, leads the MSc, Diploma and Certificate in Palliative Care, supervises several PhD students and is active in teaching. Prof. Higginson has published over 400 articles in peer-reviewed journals, plus several books; her research interests and publications are in the following areas: quality of life and outcome measurements, evaluation of palliative care especially of new services and interventions, epidemiology, clinical audit, effectiveness, psychosocial care, symptom assessment, breathlessness, cachexia/anorexia, and elderly care. She plays an active role in the clinical service, including on-call.
Dr. Stein Kaasa:
Dr. Jamie von Roenn:
Dr. Von Roenn is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology and palliative medicine. She was a professor of medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, co-director of the cancer control program at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center in Chicago, Illinois and Director of the Palliative Medicine Fellowship Training Program at Northwestern. In 2013 she moved to DC and is now at ASCO, as Senior Director of Education, Science and Professional Development. She has been involved in palliative medicine since the 1980s.
CARE (Cancer and Aging: Reflections for Elders) SIG welcomes everyone who is interested in research or clinical activities involving older cancer patients, survivors, and their family members to a meeting on July 31th, Friday, 12:10 – 1:40 pm. We will exchange tips and resources to improve clinical practices to enhance the quality of life and discuss opportunities for research collaboration nationally and internationally. We will also update progress of our projects discussed last year and discuss new directions and activities.
The IPOS Early Career Professionals Committee warmly invites IPOS 2015 Congress attendees who are starting their careers in psycho-oncology to attend a mentoring luncheon in the Shaw room. Students and early career professionals who are within 10 years of completing their highest degree are eligible.
This will be a great opportunity for focused mentorship during the Congress, as internationally renowned leaders in psycho-oncology will provide mentorship to small groups of early career professionals.
Please register before 1st July 2015
To make sure that all groups remain small, registrations will be strictly limited and allocated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. You must be registered to attend the 2015 World Congress to be eligible for this event. NB: Please select only ONE mentor when registering.
If you have any questions, please contact Claire Wakefield (c.wakefield@unsw.edu.au) of the IPOS Early Career Psycho-oncology Professionals (ECPP) committee.
APOS Health Disparities Special Interest Group welcomes conference attendees. Our group is concerned with the disparate cancer outcomes experienced by ethnic and linguistic minorities, indigenous/native peoples, and other underserved populations. We invite you to join our meeting to discuss health inequities and strategies to bring health equity.
We look forward to you sharing your ideas towards:
1) Advancing health equity science, practice and policies relevant to psychosocial oncology;
2) APOS/IPOS contributions and efforts in remedying the undue cancer burden borne by vulnerable communities.
The APOS Research Committee will be meeting to plan activities and an agenda for the upcoming year. Anyone interested in joining the Research Committee is welcome to attend and participate in the planning meeting.
Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) is an umbrella term covering a range of subjective reports patients make regarding health, disease, or treatment, generally via structured validated questionnaires. In addition to outcomes such as distress, PROs include functional status, well-being, symptoms, health-related quality of life, and so on. PROs can be used in a number of ways to promote the patient-centeredness and improve the quality of care. In this session, a panel will highlight a number of tools developed to facilitate the use of PROs in clinical practice. These tools include the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS), a User's Guide for implementing PROs in clinical practice, standards for reporting the results of randomized clinical trials that included PRO endpoints, and a Reader's Guide to the PRO literature directed at clinicians who may be unfamiliar with PROs. This session will provide an overview of the tools and then demonstrate examples of their application in practice.
This session will demonstrate the critical role consumer advocates play in shaping the research and practice agenda for real world solutions to improve the quality of life for people diagnosed with cancer and their families. Increasingly, the practice of psycho-oncology is dogged by complex narrative, methodological disputes, and statistical skirmishing. Questions about relevance are key in an environment craving innovative yet efficacious answers to seemingly intractable problems. A series of three case studies will be presented, each bringing together a consumer advocate and psycho-oncology researcher or health professional. Each pair will describe their experience in working collaboratively to define and then subsequently address a problem, with a particular emphasis on outcomes. Finally each pair will summarise a “call to arms” for congress participants with a list of three tips or essential actions for meaningful impacts.
To close the session, the Chair will summarise the key points and facilitate a panel discussion with the audience.
Chair:Speakers:
Prof. Gary L. Kreps, Ph.D., FAAHB
University Distinguished Professor, Department of Communication Director, George Mason University, USA
Prof. Nur Aishah Mohd Taib
Professor, Consultant Breast Surgeon, University of Malaya, Malaysia
Paula Kim
Chief Executive Officer, Translating Research Across Communities (TRAC),USA
Ranjit Kaur Pritam Singh
Chairman, NCD Alliance Malaysia and Chairman, Together Against Cancer Malaysia
Prof. Suzanne Chambers
Professor of Preventative Health, Griffith Health Institute, Griffith University, Australia
Peter Dornan, AM
Convenor, Brisbane Prostate Cancer Support Network, Australia
The field of psychosocial oncology, with decades of research around improved clinical outcomes and increasing recognition as part of the standard of care, remains challenged to demonstrate its full impact in cancer care. What’s missing in our research, our practice and policies that will substantiate the value of psychosocial care? How can we better make the case for the integration of psychosocial care to healthcare providers and administrators, to patients and families, to payers and policymakers? What can we learn from other countries that we can apply in our own communities? Is there a universal need that we all share and can commit to as a global movement in quality cancer care?
MODERATOR: Susan Dentzer is the senior policy adviser for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She was the editor-in-chief of the journal Health Affairs. She is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine and the Council on Foreign Relations. She is a former health correspondent for the News Hour with Jim Lehrer and correspondent and columnist for U.S. News & World Report and Newsweek.
(PSYCHIATRY) David Kissane, MD is an academic psychiatrist, psycho-oncology researcher and author. He is currently the Head of Psychiatry for Monash University in Australia, recently the Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. His academic interests include group, couples and family psychotherapy trials, communication skills training, studies of existential distress, and the ethics of end-of-life care. He is best known for his model of family therapy delivered to ‘at risk’ families during palliative care, which prevents complicated grief and depression in bereavement.
(PEDIATRICS/NETHERLANDS) Martha Grootenhuis, Ph.D is Head Research and Co-Director of the Pediatric Psychology Department of the Emma Children’s Hospital Amsterdam. Her research is on pediatric psychology (children with chronic diseases) and pediatric psychosocial oncology in particular. She is involved in the evaluation and implementation of innovative (ehealth) interventions for children and parents. In 2007 she founded the Pediatric Psycho-Oncology committee with SIOP (SIOP-PPO).
(PSYCHOLOGY) Paul Jacobsen, PhD is currently the Associate Center Director for Population Science, Dr. Jacobsen was recruited to the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa Florida in 1994 to direct the Center’s clinical and research programs in psychosocial oncology. He was among the first investigators to describe how and why many patients continue to experience problems in quality of life long after they have completed cancer treatment. He has also been a pioneer in developing and evaluating strategies, now widely disseminated, that patients can use to better deal with the stress of being diagnosed and treated for cancer. Recently, he has focused his efforts on increasing the availability of psychosocial care for people with cancer nationally and internationally through his work with the ASCO, IPOS and several other major professional organizations.
(ONCOLOGY SOCIAL WORK/ADVOCACY) Vicki Kennedy, LCSW is Vice President, Program Development & Delivery for the Cancer Support Community (CSC) global organization in Washington, DC. An oncology social worker for the past 32 years, Ms. Kennedy is responsible for development, delivery and quality assurance of CSC community-based psychosocial programs worldwide. Ms. Kennedy formerly served as Co-Founder/CEO of The Wellness Community-Central Indiana; psycho-oncology researcher at the Walther Cancer Institute in Indianapolis; and staff social worker of the IU Cancer Center in bone marrow transplant/hematology. She is a past-president of the Association of Oncology Social Work (AOSW) and an APOS board member. Ms. Kennedy is leading the dissemination of distress screening and treatment decision support counseling across CSC and cancer centers as well as participating in cost-effectiveness of psychosocial care research.
(POLICY/HEALTH CARE) Clifford Goodman, PhD is a Senior Vice President at The Lewin Group, a health care policy and human services consulting firm located near Washington, D.C. He has 30 years of experience in health care evaluation, including HTA, evidence-based health care, comparative effectiveness research (CER), health economics, and studies pertaining to health care innovation, regulation and payment. He directs studies and projects for an international range of government agencies; pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies; health care provider institutions; and professional, industry and patient advocacy groups. His recent work has involved such areas as oncology, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, end-stage renal disease, biosimilars, and personalized medicine. He serves on the editorial boards of the International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care and the American Journal of Managed Care.
This plenary is generously supported by the Cancer Support Community with a grant from Bristol-Myers Squibb.