Team: Steering Committee Member

Donna Moore Wilson, RN, MSN, CBCN

HCA Sarah Cannon Institute at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital

Donna Moore Wilson RN, MSN, CBCN  is a High-Risk Breast Nurse Navigator with Sarah Cannon Institute at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond, Virginia and is the co-founder and current chair of the Virginia Cancer Patient Navigator Network (VaCPNN). Donna has over 23 years of experience in oncology including caring for patients in the inpatient and outpatient settings. Donna has practiced as a nurse navigator since 2007 being instrumental in developing and formalizing navigation programs within the health systems where she works. Donna recently left oncology to serve as the high risk-breast nurse navigator and formalize the high-risk breast program at HCA Advanced Diagnostic Breast Center at Henrico Doctors Hospital.

Since 2007 VaCPNN has met quarterly to provide education, best practices, and networking to oncology navigators across Virginia. Under her leadership the Virginia Cancer Patient Navigator Network has aligned with the Academy of Oncology Nurse and Patient Navigators and the Cancer Action Coalition of Virginia organizations. In 2018, VaCPNN won the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators Outstanding Local Navigator Award.

Donna received her first degree in nursing from John Tyler Community College and most recently completed Master of Science in Nursing from University of Phoenix. She is a Certified Breast Care Nurse through the Oncology Nursing Certification Corporation.

Donna has served as an expert reviewer, mentor to navigators, and a consultant on patient navigation. Donna has received many accolades during her career including the Bon Secours Sister Elizabeth Durney Award, the Virginia March of Dimes Oncology Nurse of the Year Award, OurHealth Richmond Magazine Outstanding Nurses Award, Oncology Nursing Society Foundation Masters Scholarship Merit Award, University of Phoenix Alumni Spirit Award, and the VCUH Dalton Clinic RN Excellence in Teaching Award.

Donna’s passion for navigation stems from her experience in working with oncology patients and that she supported her late husband in his cancer journey. Without realizing it, Donna was her husband’s oncology nurse navigator. That experience helped Donna realize the importance of the navigator’s role in serving as an advocate, educator, and facilitator for the patient and their families. For the health system, having a navigator involved facilitates collaboration and coordination with the patient’s treatment team resulting in positive patient outcomes.

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Arti Patel Varanasi, PhD, MPH, CPH

Advancing Synergy, President & CEO

 

Dr. Arti Patel Varanasi is President and CEO of the social enterprise, Advancing Synergy, LLC and co-founder of the non-profit organization, Health Tech Alley. She has over 25 years combined experience in cancer research, advocacy, capacity building, public health and project management and maintains close ties to the medical, public health and research community. Advancing Synergy served as the technology partner on a grant awarded to Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, MD from Susan G. Komen for the Cure® to provide virtual, personalized support to women undergoing breast cancer treatment through an innovative technology. Arti is passionate about developing innovations that build stronger communities and enable all individuals to lead healthier and longer lives. Her focus has been on leveraging technology to address chronic disease and advance health equity. With the Health Tech Alley team, Arti works to fulfill its mission of improving health outcomes and equity and uplifting individuals and communities by enabling health technology solutions, workforce development, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Arti has been selected by the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship to serve as a 2022-2023 Elevate Ambassador along with 11 other advocates to improve survivorship care in their communities. She is a proud graduate of Leadership Howard County and an active member of the health, entrepreneurial, and technology communities in the DC-Maryland-Virginia area. She currently serves as a Steering Committee Member of the Noncommunicable (NCD) Disease Roundtable, Chair of NCD Interest Group for the CORE Group, Co-Chair of the American Cancer Society National Navigation Roundtable Workforce Development Working Group, Chair of Maryland Innovation Center (MIC) Women in Technology-Central Maryland group, Co-Chair of the MIC Health Tech Innovators group, and Steering Committee Member of the Virginia-based Women in Technology group. From 2012-2016, Arti served on the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP) appointed by then Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius. Arti enjoys her role as an educator. She is a lecturer in the Master’s in Biotechnology Program at The Johns Hopkins University and recently co-developed a continuing education course in Health Information Technology Fundamentals for Howard Community College. As an advocate for improving the training of postdoctoral fellows, she was one of the founders of the National Postdoctoral Association in 2003. Arti was a fellow in the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program from 2001-2005 where her research interests focused on nutrition, immunity and cancer prevention. She received her PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and MPH from the Johns Hopkins University. Her doctoral research focused on understanding the genetic and epigenetic alterations that contribute to the development of lung tumors. Arti is also a graduate of the National Science Foundation funded ACTiVATE® program for women technology entrepreneurs. This award-winning program launched her journey into entrepreneurship and planted the seeds for Advancing Synergy and Health Tech Alley.

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Vicki Chiappetta, RHIA, CTR

American College of Surgeons (ACoS)

Vicki Chiappetta is a Senior Accreditation Specialist in Accreditation and Standards for Cancer Programs.  She has been with ACoS for over 20 years.  Vicki’s position involves site reviews, coordinating Appeals for CoC/NAPBC/NAPRC programs, Deficiency Resolutions, coordinating the Pre-Review Questionnaire (PRQ) implementation and updates, providing customer service, creating and presenting educational material in multi-media formats, liaison to the Program Review Subcommittee (PRS), and preparing PRQ/SAR resource materials for the CoC accreditation program.

Vicki earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Illinois State University and is credentialed as a Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) and a Certified Tumor Registrar (CTR). Vicki also worked in the Health Information field in various coding and management positions for over 12 years in Illinois before working with the American College of Surgeons.

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Angie Rolle Vice President, Regional Cancer Control

American Cancer Society, Inc.

North Region

Angie Rolle is the vice president of regional cancer control for the American Cancer Society’s North Region, which serves communities in Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Angie is responsible for developing and leading implementation of the North Region’s cancer control strategy, including prevention and early detection, patient programs and services and partnership engagement to drive mission outcomes.  She leads a team of staff who work with communities to innovate and find solutions to some of the most difficult public health challenges, as well as addressing barriers to care for cancer patients.

Angie began her career with the Society in 2000 as a community-based health educator, advancing to serve as a strategic planner and then the regional prevention & detection director where she led a staff team responsible for advancing screening rates, with a focus on addressing cancer health disparities.

Angie received a bachelor’s degree in Community Health Education from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Minnesota. 

Angie lives in Savage, Minnesota, with her husband, son and daughter.

 

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Electra D.Paskett, Ph.D

Ohio State University

Electra D. Paskett, Ph.D., became the Marion N. Rowley Professor of Cancer Research at The Ohio State University in 2002. She is the Director of the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control in the College of Medicine, a professor in the Division of Epidemiology in the College of Public Health and the Associate Director for Population Sciences and Community Outreach and Co-Program Leader of the Cancer Control Program in the Comprehensive Cancer Center of the Ohio State University (OSU).  She is also Director of the Center for Cancer Health Equity at the James Cancer Hospital.  Her studies use multi-level interventions in transdisciplinary teams with community-based participatory research to identify and intervene on factors causing disparities among underserved populations such as social and ethnic minority groups and rural/underserved populations. In 2016, she was appointed as a member of the National Cancer Institute’s National Cancer Advisory Board by President Obama, and in 2019, she was appointed as a member of the Ohio Commission on Minority Health by Governor DeWine.

 

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Elizabeth Franklin, PhD, MSW

Head, US Public Affairs and Patient Advocacy, Oncology Sanofi

Elizabeth Franklin, PhD, MSW, is an advocate for people impacted by cancer and is passionate about ensuring that patient voices are the north star in health care decision and policy making. Growing up in Kentucky where cancer, cancer mortality, and poverty rates routinely rank among the highest in the country, Elizabeth was drawn to this work by witnessing people being left behind and systems that resulted in inequitable care. These values have driven her for almost two decades in oncology patient advocacy, public policy, research and executive positions in corporate and non-profit settings.

Elizabeth currently serves as Head, U.S. Public Affairs and Patient Advocacy, Oncology with Sanofi, an innovative global healthcare company, where she partners with the U.S. advocacy community to advance innovation, ensure access, and improve health. Elizabeth previously held positions as President of the Cancer Support Community, Director of Policy and Engagement at the George Washington University Cancer Institute, Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy with the Prevent Cancer Foundation, and Special Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer at the headquarters of the National Association of Social Workers.

Elizabeth is a recognized leader. She received the Association of Oncology Social Worker’s Quality of Life Award in 2022 and was named a 40 under 40 leader in oncology in 2020. Her research articles have appeared in publications such as the JCO Oncology Practice, Journal of Cancer Education, Journal of Clinical Pathways, Health and Social Work, Value in Health, and Conquer Cancer Magazine. She has co-authored two books on non-profit leadership and co-edited two social work texts. In addition, she is a member and leader in various organizations and coalitions, including the Association of Oncology Social Work, Academy of Oncology Nurse and Patient Navigators, National Navigation Roundtable, and National Association of Social Workers.

Elizabeth earned her doctorate at the University of Maryland School of Social Work, where she focused her dissertation on the ways in which patients define value in the cancer care system and how those definitions can be incorporated into public policy and clinical practice. Elizabeth obtained her Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago and her Bachelors Degree in Social Work from the University of Kentucky. Elizabeth resides in Washington, DC and is an avid reader, aspiring banjo player, volunteer crisis counselor, and proud mother of pugs.

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Katie Garfield, JD

Center for Health Law Policy Innovation of Harvard Law School

Katie Garfield is a Clinical Instructor at the Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation of Harvard Law School. Ms. Garfield joined the Center in 2014 and currently focuses her work on the Center’s Whole Person Care portfolio. In her work on these initiatives, she collaborates with community-based organizations, state agencies, health care providers, and state and national coalitions to address legal and policy barriers that limit the ability of U.S. health care providers and payers to effectively address patient health-related social needs. Prior to joining the Center, Ms. Garfield was an associate at Ropes & Gray LLP. Ms. Garfield has a BA from Yale University, a JD from Harvard Law School, and is a licensed member of the Massachusetts Bar.

 

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Angelo Moore, PhD, RN, NE-BC 

Duke Cancer Institute

Dr. Angelo D. Moore is the Assistant Director, Community Outreach, Engagement, and Equity (COEE), Duke Cancer Institute, where he provides overall direction, coordination, and implementation DCI’s community impact-designed projects to reduce cancer outcomes disparities in the DCI community and across its Catchment Area.  COEE goals are to: (1) Engage meaningfully, respectfully, and collaboratively with community partners, (2) Build strong, bi-directional partnerships between our community and DCI cancer researchers, and (3) Develop a multi-level, prospective data infrastructure to guide community-DCI partnerships.  The mission is to reduce cancer disparities and improve population health in DCI catchment area for historically marginalized and medically underserved populations such as the African American, LatinX, Asian American, Native American, Jewish, Muslim, LGBTQ+, refugee, and rural communities.

Dr. Moore leads the Community-Facing Navigation program at Duke Cancer Institute.  Duke Cancer Institute utilizes a longitudinal patient navigation multidisciplinary matrix model, which incorporates multiple patient navigation entities.  Within this longitudinal patient navigation multidisciplinary matrix, COEE has Community-Facing Patient Navigators, which is unique. These Community-Facing Patient Navigators are employees of the health care system, operate in the community, and trained by the Harold P. Freeman Patient Navigation Institute.  Some responsibilities include providing cancer education on prevention, early detection screening as well as navigating individuals needing cancer screenings, follow-up for abnormal screenings to diagnostic testing, and into treatment if diagnosed with cancer.  The uniqueness of being within the health care system allows these Community-Facing Navigators get patients to and through the health care system to maximize continuum of care.  He is a member of the National Navigation Roundtable Steering Committee.  He is also a member of the Evidence Based Promising Practices Task Group and the Membership Committee. 

Dr. Moore is an Adjunct Associate Professor at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing and serves on the America250 Health & Wellness Advisory Council, National Black Nurses Association Board of Directors, UNC-CH School of Nursing Alumni Board of Directors, NC Advisory Council Cancer Coordination Control Early Detection Subcommittee, NC Historically Marginalized Populations Workgroup, and numerous other committees.  

He received his BSN in 1995 from Winston-Salem State University, MSN in 2002 from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, and PhD in 2010 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He served 25 years in the U.S. Army and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. He has over 25 years of nursing experience in Medical-Surgical, Critical Care, and Primary Care Nursing as a Family Nurse Practitioner.  He has held multiple leadership positions including Charge Nurse, Nurse Manager, Commander, as well as multiple Executive Leadership positions such as Deputy Chief & Chief for the Centers for Nursing Science & Clinical Inquiry, and Chief Nurse of Education for the Fayetteville VA Medical Center which also included 8 Community-Based Outpatient Clinics throughout Southeastern North Carolina. He is a board-certified Nurse Executive.

Dr. Moore was awarded the 2002 Distinguished Clinical Performance Award at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 2004 Outstanding Military RN at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, 2012 National Black Nurses Association Nurse Researcher of the Year, the 2012 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing Graduate of the Last Decade Alumni Awardee,  a 2013 Winston-Salem State University Alumni Achiever Awardee, and inducted into the Order of Military Medical Merit in 2015.  In 2019, the Uniformed Services University blog “Pulse” featured him in their “Black History Month Profiles: 20 Inspiring Uniformed Services University Alumni.” In 2021, he was awarded the Presidential Award from Duke University.

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Sharon Gentry, RN, MSN, ONN-CG, AOCN, CBCN, CBEC

Novant Health

Ms. Gentry is part of an ongoing successful breast nurse navigator program at the Novant Health Derrick L. Davis Cancer Center. She is an interdisciplinary team member connecting 2 hospitals, a breast mammography clinic, a regional cancer center, a community surgical office and a variety of community resources in Winston-Salem, NC. She received her bachelor’s degree in nursing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her master’s degree in nursing education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She has been a member of the Academy of Oncology Nurse and Patient Navigators Leadership Council since its inception in 2009 and speaks at their annual and regional conferences on nurse navigation issues. In 2012-2017, she co-chaired the annual AONN+ conferences.She serves on the editorial board of The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA and CONQUER and is the breast editor for the Journal of Oncology Navigation & Survivorship (JONS). She has authored articles in JONS, Cancer, The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA, Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, and CONQUER as well as authored chapters in the books Delivering Patient-Centered Care Across the Continuum and Nurse Navigation Case Studies. She has been a member of the Oncology Nursing Society since 1983. She was a founding member of the Piedmont Triad Oncology Nurse Chapter in 1988 and has served in a leadership role since its inception. She was a participant on the inception of the Oncology Nursing Certified Breast Care Nurse examination and chaired the Oncology Nursing Certification Breast Care Committee 2010-2012. She holds certification as Oncology Nurse Navigation Generalist Certification, Certified Breast Care Nurse, Advanced Oncology Practice Nurse, and Clinical Breast Examination Certified. On nursing navigation commitment, she assisted in organizing the state navigation association—North Carolina Oncology Navigator Association as well as participated on the Standardized Navigation Metrics Task Force, under the AONN+ Evidence into Practice Committee, and assisted in the development of the 35-national evidence-based navigation metrics that all navigation programs—no matter the model of navigation chosen—can utilize to measure success and sustainability of their program. Ms. Gentry travels nationally lecturing on the navigation concept. On the local level, she is a Northwest North Carolina Susan G. Komen volunteer, serves on the board of the local hospice and participates in the Derrick L. Davis Forsyth Regional Cancer Center Oncology Breast Advisory Committee.

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Elizabeth Calhoun, PhD, MEd

University of Illinois Chicago 

Dr. Calhoun, PhD MEd, is currently the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Population Health Sciences, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs for the University of Illinois Chicago and in previous role as the Associate Director of Population Sciences at the University of Arizona Cancer Center. In addition, she is the past Executive Director for the Center for Population Science and Discovery. She was the Director of the Center of Excellence in Eliminating Disparities funded by NIMHD and the Co-Director for the Center for Population Health and Health Disparities funded by NCI at the University of Illinois at Chicago. In addition, she was the principal investigator of an NCI-funded study to test the efficacy of a patient navigation program on improving compliance with cancer care in the largest network of federally qualified health centers in the country. She is an experienced health services researcher with expertise in health disparities. She was a member of the Commission on Cancer standards committee that requires community assessment and patient navigation services for accreditation. She has lead the Illinois training for navigators and certified application counselors and evaluation for the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in Illinois from 2013-2016.  She also was an editor of a book entitled Patient Navigation- Overcoming Barriers to Care, which offers a practical guide to creating, implementing and evaluating successful programs.

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