Winship community research grants address cancer health disparities

Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University has awarded mini grants to three Georgia organizations to support projects that aim to reduce cancer disparities.

The grants will go to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville, Ga., Phoebe Cancer Center in Albany, Ga., and Turning Point Breast Cancer Rehabilitation in Atlanta.

Winship's Office of Community Outreach and Engagement oversees the community mini grants program, which encourages collaboration between Winship researchers and community organizations. The goal is to disseminate practices that have proven effective in improving cancer outcomes. Special emphasis is given to programs that serve communities with cancer mortality rates higher than state averages. Winship backs programs that help recruit underserved populations to clinical trials, promote cancer prevention and early detection, and improve access to survivorship and patient support.

Mini grants range from $8,000 to $10,000 for projects delivered over a 10-month period. Proposals were reviewed by members of Winship’s Office of Community Outreach and Engagement Community Advisory Board and its Internal Scientific Advisory Panel.

Projects selected for funding for the 2021-2022 grant cycle are:

COVID-19 Vaccine and Southwest Georgia Cancer Survivors

• Goal: To assess attitudes, intentions and practices related to COVID-19 vaccination among cancer patients and to evaluate COVID-19 education offered to adult cancer survivors at the Phoebe Cancer Center.
• Awardee Organization: Phoebe Cancer Center (Albany, Ga.)
• Project Leader: Ursula Mathis-Dennis, RN, MBA
• Winship Research Partner: Cam Escoffery, PhD, MPH, CHES
• Primary Service Area: Dougherty, Mitchell, Terrell, Lee, and Worth counties

Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Survivorship: Results of a National Program to Identify Solutions and Enact Change

• Goal: To evaluate the impact and scalability of TurningPoint’s Forum Series, comprised of four virtual sessions designed to engage health care providers and stakeholders and promote actions to address racial disparity in breast cancer survivorship.
• Awardee Organization: TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation (Atlanta, Ga.)
• Project Leader: Jill Binkley, PT, MSc, CLT
• Winship Research Partner: Lauren E. McCullough, PhD, MSPH
• Primary Service Area: Statewide (virtual)

The Use of Touch in Cancer Caregiving

• Goal: To implement the Touch, Caring and Cancer Program, a research-tested, multimedia instructional program for cancer patients and their caregivers. The program offers psychoeducational content on the use of touch and teaches simple techniques to provide comfort and relaxation in cancer caregiving in the home. Fifty people with cancer and their care partners in Barrow and Stephens counties will be recruited and trained to use the multimedia materials for self-paced support to reduce symptoms from cancer and related treatment.
• Project Leaders: Andria Caton, MSN, RN, OCN, CHPN, and Jayme Carrico, MBA
• Awardee Organization: Northeast Georgia Medical Center (Gainesville, Georgia)
• Primary Service Area: Barrow and Stephens counties