Educating Professionals about School Re-entry: Long-term follow-up results

BACKGROUND Welcome Back: Facilitating the Return to School for Children with Cancer program is a national program developed and implemented through a partnership between The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

PURPOSE The purpose of the program was to improve school professionals' confidence, understanding, and ability to address the educational needs of childhood cancer survivors. The purpose of this study was to assess if, three months after the program, the participants were knowledgeable, confident and active in addressing the learning needs of students with cancer.

SIGNIFICANCE Surviving childhood cancer has many challenges. School provides as sense of normalcy at a time when nothing else is normal. Providing the resources students with cancer need to return and remain in school can help improve their long term outcomes.

METHODOLOGY Three months after attending the program, individuals received an email inviting them to complete an online survey. The 19 question survey assessed participants' ratings of the program, knowledge about the key components, and changes made as a professional.

FINDINGS/RESULTS The results indicate that the program goals to improve school professionals' confidence, understanding, and ability to address the educational needs of childhood cancer survivor were maintained over time. Additionally, those working with cancer reported implementing many of the recommendations provided within the training.

CONCLUSIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS These results provide support that while additional resources still may be necessary to ensure that schools are prepared to help students with cancer, continued education in this manner has positive outcomes over the long term.