Eryka Murray Where Science Becomes Hope® Spotlight
As a health educator, we inspire hope by promoting healthy lifestyles within our community.
Eryka Murray is a health educator with the Office of Community Outreach and Engagement at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. In a recent interview, she shares how the office reaches out into communities throughout the state of Georgia to engage them in Winship’s research programs.
Murray explains that engaging the community ensures that Winship’s discoveries and treatment breakthroughs best address the cancer burden that our communities face. Community engagement in research also helps Winship to implement our scientific advances and share them widely. This helps to improve cancer outcomes and reduce cancer disparities.
“Our ultimate goals are better cancer prevention, survivor rates and quality of life for patients in Georgia and beyond,” Murray says.
What are some ways that your work at Winship inspires hope?
As a health educator, we inspire hope by promoting healthy lifestyles within our community. This means promoting smoking cessation, increasing regular cancer screenings, HPV vaccinations, as well as promoting healthy lifestyles such as healthy diets and regular physical activity.
Most recently, while I was out in the community, I came across an individual who was seeking cancer screenings for breast cancer and colorectal cancer. I shared with her information from Emory Healthcare, so that she could have a health care home where she could have her cancer screenings regularly. Treatment works best when cancers are detected early.
What does “Where Science Becomes Hope” mean to you?
Where Science Becomes Hope® means that partnering with communities, our community-based organizations and researchers collectively can address social determinants of health by identifying them and removing those barriers so that we can have an impact on the cancer burden here in Georgia.
Winship is where science becomes hope.
Who have you observed inspiring hope in our patients, our team or our community? We would love to hear from you. If you have a story to share about someone inspiring hope at Winship, reach out to us using this form.