) """"""""The Network Project A Cancer Education and Training Program in Pain Management, Rehabilitation and Psychosocial Issues"""""""" was established by the Pain, Psychiatry and Rehabilitation Medicine Services of the Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) five years ago, through a grant from the Cancer Education Grant Program of the National Cancer Institute. In this brief period of time, the """"""""Network Project"""""""" has become a nationally recognized and valued resource which has been demonstrated to be highly efficacious as an inter-disciplinary multi-component cancer pain education and training program. This application proposes to continue and to expand this very successful project. To date, approximately 225 graduates and practicing health professionals of all disciplines across the nation have been provided with the means, to enhance their expertise as local educators and trainers in cancer and AIDS pain and quality of life issues through participation in """"""""The Network Project."""""""" In this application, we propose to expand the Network Project by establishing a collaboration between the existing MSKCC Program and the newly developed (by former MSKCC Network Project Co-Investigators) Department of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care (R. Portenoy, M.D., Chairman and Co-P.I.) at the Beth Israel Medical Center in New York. This collaboration will allow for a larger, more diverse observership program, as well as an expansion of the scope of education and training efforts to include cancer pain as well as other cancer-related palliative care issues. Our overall goals are to continue to promote an integrated, multi-disciplinary approach to cancer pain management and related palliative care issues, and to provide local clinicians and educators with the experience and teaching materials that will help them foster such an approach to care in their communities.
Our specific aims are: 1) To continue and expand a multi-site, multi-component education and training program in cancer pain management, psychosocial oncology, cancer rehabilitation and palliative care (the """"""""Network Project"""""""") which consists of; a) The Observership Program - a two-week educational and tutorial experience at MSKCC and BIMC; b) The Mentorship Program a role model/mentor program which utilizes an expanded interdisciplinary faculty at MSKCC and BIMC; c) The Education Resource Center/Library. This center/library creates teaching modules (13 completed with plans for 20-25) on cancer pain and palliative care, and organizes conferences on cancer pain and related issues (at least 4 organized to date, with plans for 1 yearly); d) The Network - a network of observership graduates and mentor faculty fostered through the publication of 'The Network News Newsletter' (3 times a year). 2) To continue to evaluate the impact of such a multi-component education training program on a) individual participant's knowledge, and b) participant's training and educational activities. The continuation of the Network Project, in this expanded form, will have a great impact on patient care and improved quality of life for cancer patients and their families.
| Breitbart, W; Rosenfeld, B; Passik, S D (1998) The Network Project: a multidisciplinary cancer education and training program in pain management, rehabilitation, and psychosocial issues. J Pain Symptom Manage 15:18-26 |
