MCC 2007 Spirit of Collaboration Award Winner Beaumont Cancer Institute’s Minority Outreach Program
About the Initiative Beaumont Cancer Institute’s (BCI) Minority Outreach Program, in conjunction with community organizations, created an innovative initiative for the metropolitan Detroit area’s large ethnic/minority populations (African American, Arab/Chaldean, Hispanic/Latino, Native American, and Asian American) with the goal of providing cultural-specific bilingual/cancer education forums in an effort to decrease racial/ethnic health disparities.
Impetus for the Collaboration
In September of 2003, the 1st Annual Minority Outreach Cancer Prevention Forum was held. The initial forum addressed prevention, treatment and detection of prostate cancer in African-Americans. During the next six month, requests were made from the community to provide additional information on prevention, detection and treatment on other cancers (breast, lung, colorectal, and cervical cancer) to this community.
Following review of data, (i.e., according to the NCI data: 1986-1991 60 percent of Caucasian women breast cancer, but only 48 percent of African-American women were diagnosed at a very early stage), the need for ongoing cancer education and screening to these underserved communities was evident.
In an effort to begin to address these disparities, the 2nd Annual African-American Symposium was held in March of 2005, followed by the 1st Arab American and Chaldean Symposium in October of 2005, with the goals to provide our minority communities with up-to-date educational information on breast, prostate, gynecologic, lung, and colorectal cancer prevention, detection, treatment, and screening.
Lessons Learned 1. Working together allows us to provide greater resources to our underserved communities.
2. The true meaning of diversity can only be achieved and accomplished through collaboration with the communities we hope to reach.
3. Our goal of diminishing the number of cancer incidences will ultimately be achieved by our ability to further penetrate the conscious of our minority communities through our collaborative effort.
MCC Recognition
“Beaumont Cancer Institute’s Minority Outreach Program” received the Michigan Cancer Consortium’s 2007 Spirit of Collaboration Award. The annual award is presented to member organizations that have done outstanding collaborative work to significantly move comprehensive cancer control activities forward in Michigan.
Learn More For more information about this project, please contact Vicky Dykes, Cancer Center Coordinator, Beaumont Cancer Institute at 248-551-1219 (e-mail: vdykes@beaumont.edu).