Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #109772

Carolyn Aldige¹, Erica Childs, MPH¹, Abby Fairbank, MPH¹, Suzanne Hoban, MPH², Gloria Londono³, Karen J. Peterson, PhD¹, Tania Torres¹, and Maryen Vemuri, DDS, MPH⁴. (1) Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation, 1600 Duke Street, Suite 500, Alexandria, VA 22314, 703-519-2104, echilds@preventcancer.org, (2) Family Health Partnership Clinic, 13707 W. Jackson, Woodstock, IL 60098, (3) Georgetown Lombardi Cancer Center, 3800 Reservoir Road, NW, Podium C, Washington, DC 20007, (4) Spanish Catholic Center, 1618 Monroe Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

For the past ten years, °Celebremos la Vida! has provided bilingual and culturally appropriate breast and cervical cancer education, screening and early detection for medically underserved Hispanic women first in Washington, DC and more recently in McHenry County, Illinois. This long-standing program is home to a high percentage of returning participants who spread the message of early detection, referring friends and family members to the clinics. Celebremos reaches an uninsured population facing multiple barriers to care. Through partnerships, Celebremos ensures free medical follow-up and treatment should breast or cervical disease be detected. The coordinators guide these women through a complicated healthcare system, providing emotional and informational support, translation, and access to care that may otherwise be unattainable. In an era of resource scarcity, Celebremos continues to meet challenges endemic to outreach programs. Statistical reporting across multiple sites, securing funding and maintaining partnerships for the provision of care are fundamental challenges. Reach statistics include demographic data, specific services provided, return participants, women needing and completing follow-up services, and cancer diagnoses. This presentation will cover multiple years of evaluation data, including patient satisfaction, and the planned development of a tool to quantify the impact of patient navigation in meeting the needs of this population. The discussion will highlight the lessons learned in the development and implementation of a sustainable cancer prevention program targeting the Hispanic community.

Learning Objectives:

• 1) To describe a sustainable cancer education and screening program for an underserved population.
• 2) To state the importance of bilingual patient navigation in today’s healthcare system for vulnerable populations facing many barriers to care.
• 3) To demonstrate the challenge of collecting evaluation data across multiple program sites.
• 4) To summarize lessons learned for cancer screening programs targeting underserved communities.

Keywords: Cancer Prevention, Underserved Populations

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation