Society Partners With Ohio University Scripps College of Communication

The American Cancer Society and Ohio University Scripps College of Communication partnership began in 2002 with the intent of reducing and/or eliminating barriers to health in Appalachian communities in a 29-county region. Incidence of lung, colon and cervical cancers are markedly higher in this area than the state average. Over the years, the partnership expanded to include qualitative and quantitative research and outreach projects that address cancer awareness and prevention, health literacy and caregiving.

 

ACS has supported a range of outreach and research projects at OU:

The Art of the Possible is a one-hour, high-definition independent documentary which chronicles five families living with a member's cancer, its treatment and what remains in the aftermath. It presents a narrative portrayal of families trying to create a "new normal" in the midst of cancer and the care providers that serve them. It also features Dr. Peter Anderson, a pediatric oncologist and professor at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. In a remarkable way, he practices medicine with narrative sensibilities and from a family-centered perspective.
 

The documentary by OU faculty members Lynn Harter, PhD, and Casey Hayward, MFA was created to educate the public, patients, family members, future physicians and other health care providers. It won a Broadcast Education Association Award for Excellence for Faculty Documentaries. A ten-minute excerpt of the documentary is available on the project website. The entire 70-minute documentary can be borrowed by contacting Judith Musser at 888-227-6446 x8409 or Judith.Musser@cancer.org.

Linking Appalachian Ohio Residents to Cancer Screening Services
An Assessment of Cancer Screening Barriers and Facilitators

What sources do residents of Appalachian Ohio use to learn about health? And does health information change their attitude and behaviors? Doctoral students Jennette and Travis Lovejoy conducted research to learn more about how health information flows in Appalachia. They explored demographics related to exposure, experience and access to health care for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers in the region.

FaceBooking Cancer
Applying the Health Belief Model to College Students

Is there a role for social networking sites such as Facebook in raising awareness of cancer? Jennette and Travis Lovejoy are using on-line surveys to ask students from universities, community colleges and technical schools about their perceptions of cancer, specifically lung, breast, and cervical cancer, and whether social networking can improve awareness and risk prevention.

Health Literacy Conference

Since 2006, the ACS-SCOC partners have collaborated with the OU College of Osteopathic Medicine Area Health Education Center and the College of Education Literacy Center to program a full-day conference on health literacy for health professionals and nursing students. The conference objective is to improve health literacy communication skills and awareness in Appalachia.
  

Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver

Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver is a play about a young woman's struggles to serve as caregiver, first to her beloved mother, who contracted cancer at an early age, and soon after to her father, with whom her relationship had been stormy. Developed by Playwright Merri Biechler, MFA and Tracy Marx, DO, the play was created as a play-turned-educational program to familiarize student physicians and nurses with the emotional, technical, physical, communicative and other problems that accompany end-of-life experiences. 

The play has been presented to medical, nursing and healthcare students, as well as theatrical audiences throughout Ohio. It has been read for audiences in New York City, Jacksonville, New Orleans, Clemson, S.C., and Atlanta. It has won numerous playwriting awards. Video copies of the play can be requested on loan by contacting Judith Musser at Judith.Musser@cancer.org.