Summer 2013

News
The official newsletter of the Association of Physician Assistants in Oncology • Summer 2013
in this issue...
Invitation to Attend
the 16th Annual
APAO Conference....Page 3
Fifth Annual Best
of ASCO® Program
to be Offered
at Annual
Conference...............Page 5
2nd Annual
Oncology Student
Day to be Held
During APAO
Annual Conference...Page 5
Message from the
President
By Michele T. Neskey, PA-C, APAO President
I hope everyone is enjoying a little vacation and
having a wonderful summer!
I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for
your continued membership
and support of APAO as we
usher in a new year of leadership.
The APAO had another
landmark year under the
leadership of immediate
past president Heather Hylton. Under her leadership,
APAO was able to make a
seamless transition to our
new management company
Kautter Management Group
(KMG). Working closely with
Lynn Hupp and Tina Kautter from KMG, Heather was
able to create resources for
our members, transition the
website, improve communication with members via
e-blast and social media, as
well as increase membership. Her work with Todd
Pickard, ASCO liaison, has
strengthened our relationship with ASCO including the
development of resources
for oncology PAs, continuation of the ASCO highlights
day at our annual APAO
conference, as well the Pre-
Annual Meeting Seminar at
the ASCO national meeting in conjunction with the
Oncology Nursing Society
(ONS). Heather has been a
true leader and role model.
It is an honor to follow in her
footsteps as I serve as APAO
President for 2013-2014.
I would like to express
my gratitude to outgoing
board members who dedicate their valuable time to
the APAO. It is volunteers
like you that continue to advance our organization and
the presence of PAs in the
field of oncology. I hope that
you will continue as leaders
in our community.
I would also like to congratulate
President-Elect
Evgeny Mikler and welcome
all of our new board members into the organization. I
look forward to working all of
you this year and beyond.
Over the years, the
APAO has grown tremendously as an organization
through hard work and dedication of our volunteer board
of directors and members.
With KMG as our management partner, I believe we
can build upon the founda-
tion of previous leaders and
continue the momentum
into 2013-2014. With this in
mind, I would like to share
with you my vision for the
upcoming year.
Education
The APAO will be holding its 16th annual CME
conference in Philadelphia,
PA September 19-22, 2013.
Each year the conference
is a landmark event for our
organization, offering a variety of sessions and topics
throughout oncology. We are
proud to offer high-level CME
to meet the ongoing needs
of PAs in Oncology and to be
able to offer an ASCO Highlights session as an adjunct
to the meeting. This year will
be our 5th year having Best
of ASCO® included in the
program due to the dedication of ASCO liaison Todd
Pickard who continues to
expand our relationship with
the organization. Our conference planning committee
has put together an exciting
new program for this year
and I hope to see you in his-
Continued on page 2
Message from the President
Continued from page 1
APAO is continually working to
meet the educational needs of our
members and we need your input.
toric Philadelphia!
APAO is continually working to
meet the educational needs of our
members and we need your input.
My goal is to involve active members
of APAO to guide us in creating educational materials for oncology PAs in
a range of different disciplines. I also
want to include you in our conference
planning by recruiting volunteers to become more involved in the process. If
you are interested in becoming more
involved in our education efforts, reach
out to us!
I am passionate about developing
and providing oncology educational resources for PAs new to the field. APAO
has an educational partnership with
ASCO University and the Focus Under
Forty curriculum. I hope to expand on
these efforts and continue to develop
relationships with other oncology organizations to provide the best information possible to our members. I also
hope to expand access to educational
materials to our members through the
APAO website.
Student Outreach
Student outreach will remain a priority for the APAO as students are the
future oncology workforce. This year
we intend to have 2 student representatives with APAO to help with conference planning and our annual scholarship. For the first time at our annual
CME conference in Scottsdale, AZ, in
2012, APAO hosted a “Student Day” for
PA students in the surrounding area.
It proved to be very successful and I
hope to continue this tradition in the
upcoming year. Promoting student involvement will raise awareness of oncology as a career for PAs, strengthen
our workforce, and identify future leaders in the field.
Strengthening Our Presence
Over the last few years, the APAO
has developed relationships with other
national oncology organizations such
as ASCO, ASBMT, and COA. Oncology PAs are being recruited for steering committees and subcommittees
for these organizations. I hope to
strengthen our current liaison positions
and develop new partnerships in the
upcoming year by having APAO representatives at national conferences.
Increasing our presence at these meetings will be integral in expanding our
reach and national presence.
Membership
Perhaps the most important component in the success of any organization is its members! APAO strives to increase value for your membership and
create new incentives for your commitment to us. It is our mission to make
every oncology PA feel represented
by their constituent organization. Using our website, e-blasts, newsletters
and social media, we will continue to
maintain communication with our members about job postings, educational
conferences, volunteer opportunities
and more! I hope to continue increase
membership and encourage those interested in becoming more involved in
APAO to take that next step. The future
of our organization relies on dedicated
volunteers who are passionate about
oncology to lead the field.
I encourage you to consider volunteering your expertise in APAO projects
or committees that may be of interest
to you and inspire your colleagues to
join us! Lets work together build on our
foundation, continue the great work of
leaders before us, and take APAO to
new heights!
Page 2 • ONCO News • Summer 2013
APAO Board
of Directors
President
Michele T. Neskey, PA-C
[email protected]
President-elect
Evgeny Mikler, PA-C
[email protected]
treasurer
Eric Tetzlaff, PA-C
[email protected]
secretary
Stacey Becker, PA-C
[email protected]
past President
Heather M. Hylton, PA-C
[email protected]
at-large
Richard J. Lindsay, PA-C
[email protected]
Maura Polansky, PA-C
[email protected]
Executive Director
Tina Kautter, CAE
[email protected]
assistant
executive Director
Lynn Hupp
[email protected]
APAO Headquarters
222 S. Westmonte Dr., Ste. 101
Altamonte Springs, FL 32714
407-774-7880
Fax: 407-774-6440
www.apao.cc
Invitation to Attend the
16th Annual APAO Conference
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
We invite you to attend the 16th Annual APAO CME Conference to be held in Philadelphia, PA. The theme for the conference is “The Multidisciplinary Approach to Cancer Care” and will take place from September 19-22, 2013, at the Sheraton
Society Hill.
The Conference Planning Committee has worked hard to provide a robust program that will bring together some of the top
researchers and clinicians in the field of oncology and related fields. We will have multidisciplinary lectures from nationally
and internationally known surgical, radiation and medical oncologists from some of the top cancer centers in the country.
The keynote address “Fishin for Bugs… that is, Microbes and Malignancy” delivered by Dr. Lary Robinson, Director of
the Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa,
Florida, will discuss the link between microorganism as causative agents for the development of cancer.
Some of the highlights of the conference are certain to include…
• From the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Javid Moslehi will lecture on Cardiac Oncology and the issues that arise
from traditional chemotherapy as well as targeted therapies. • Dr. Moslehi will join Dr. Crystal Denlinger and Sharon Schwartz, CRNP, both from the Fox Chase Cancer Center in
a panel discussion on survivorship care. Dr. Denlinger is the panel chair for the NCCN’s first ever “clinical practice
guidelines in oncology for survivorship.” • New to the conference this year will be an enhanced multidisciplinary lecture format with topics to include cholangiocarcinoma, breast cancer, lung cancer and survivorship care. • A must see lecture will feature the specialists from the lung cancer program at Abramson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania Hospital. The program will include medical oncologist Roger Cohen, surgical oncologist
Vincent Lotano, and radiation oncologist Charles Simone and their team approach to lung cancer.
• The Welcome reception will be held aboard the Moshulu, the world’s largest four-masted sailing ship still afloat. Permanently docked a few blocks from the conference at Penn’s Landing, the Moshulu features American fusion
cuisine from Executive Chef Anthony Bonett. Featured in Zagat, the Moshulu is included in the best of Philadelphia
for outdoor dining and restaurants with impressive views.
•
We hope that you will join us in Philadelphia for this year’s conference. We are certain you will enjoy the educational program, your colleagues in oncology, and exploring the wonderful history of Philadelphia.
Stacey Becker, MS, PA-C 2013 Conference Co-Chair
Page 3 • ONCO News • Summer 2013
Eric Tetzlaff, PA-C
2013 Conference Co-Chair
The Association of Physician Assistants in Oncology presents
16th Annual Conference
Register TODAY!!
September 19-22, 2013
Sheraton Society Hill • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Fifth Annual Best of ASCO® Program
to be Offered at Annual Conference
By Heather M. Hylton, PA-C, APAO Past President
The Association of Physician Assistants in Oncology is pleased to offer
its fifth annual Best of ASCO® program
on September 19 in Philadelphia!
If you were unable to make the
ASCO Annual Meeting this year or if
you are looking for highlights from this
year’s Annual Meeting, the informative
Best of ASCO® program will help keep
you apprised of the latest developments in Oncology.
Experts from across the United
States will be discussing important
findings revealed at this year’s Annual
Meeting. Featured topic areas include
Breast, Lung, Genitourinary, Gynecologic, and Gastrointestinal Cancers;
Lymphoma and Plasma Cell Disorders
along with Leukemia, Myelodysplasia,
and Transplantation, and updates in
Health Services Research. There will
also be a special presentation about
ongoing research on the Oncology
Workforce presented by key ASCO
staff.
We hope you will be able to attend
this excellent program! For more information, please click here.
2nd Annual Oncology Student Day to be
Held During APAO Annual Conference
By Heather Carlson, PA-C
At the APAO Conference in Philadelphia this year, we are happy to bring
back the 2nd Annual Oncology Student
Day on Saturday, September 21st. We
have reached out to the PA and NP programs in the Philadelphia area, inviting
their students to join us for a free half
day allowing them to attend the major
sessions, but also offering studentspecific topics. We’ll be discussing how
and why to pursue a career in oncology, basics of hepatocellular cancer and
also trying to tackle how to have difficult
conversations. Consider recommending attending the entire conference to
any oncology-inclined PA student as
the student rate is $25/day. For those
students who are contemplating oncology, it will be a valuable time of learning
and interaction with those in the field.
Also, we are trying to build a student
mentorship program. Please consider
being a mentor to a student in the future and sign up when you complete
your online registration.
Student Opportunities in APAO
In addition to the Student Day at
the Annual Conference, APAO offers
other opportunities for students.
The APAO Student Scholarship is
awarded to a student each year at the
APAO Membership Meeting during the
AAPA Annual Conference. A scholarship of up to $2500 is awarded, with
$500 allotted for the recipient’s travel
expense to the AAPA meeting and the
other $2,000 is unrestricted. Students
will be able to apply beginning next
Spring. More information about the program can be found here http://apao.cc/
node/31.
For general information on student
opportunities, visit the website here
http://apao.cc/node/14.
Page 5 • ONCO News • Summer 2013
Oncology PAs
in the News
Do you know what APAO members David Coniglio, Michele
Neskey, Deb Yolin-Raley and
Jeremy Heinerich have in common? They have all been featured in or authored articles
included in journals such as
Journal of Oncology Practice,
ADVANCE for NPs and PAs and
The Oncology Nurse-APN/PA.
APAO is very proud of these
members and we want to encourage all members to share
your articles or stories that have
been printed in oncology-related
publications. Send your name
and a link to the article you want
us to share to apao@kmgnet.
com. Also, check out the “PAs in
the News” page on our website
at http://apao.cc/node/5.
APAO would like to THANK YOU for your support and membership in our organization.
Without you, it would be difficult to make such an impact on our profession year after year.
It’s not too late to renew you membership and take advantage of the member benefits.
If you haven’t renewed your 2013-2014 APAO Membership, please consider the great benefits that
APAO offers its members, and if you have not yet joined APAO, please see what you are missing:
v Free subscriptions to Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology, Health Monitor Network, JADPRO, and other journals
v 10% discount on new ASCO affiliate membership
v Continuing Education opportunities at the APAO annual oncology CME conference with discounted registration fees for members only
v Exclusive job posting access to members only
v House of Delegates Representation at AAPA – voting members can provide input on matters of
concern to the APAO at the HOD
v APAO’s Website offers a “Members Only” section that includes a searchable Membership Directory, networking opportunities, access to Forums/Message Boards that include Legislative Updates
and important issues that affect our profession
v More opportunities to get involved in the organization that represents you, the oncology PA
v Much, much more!
If you would like to take advantage of these great benefits, please consider renewing your membership
or joining TODAY!
To renew your membership or join, please visit the APAO Website at http://www.apao.cc/user/register.
If you have forgotten your username or password, please click the forgot your password or
forgot your user name link. You can contact APAO Headquarters at 407-774-7880 for additional
assistance.
We URGE you to renew your membership in APAO. Without your support, APAO would be unable to effectively provide all the services we currently offer to our members. Did you know that
APAO maintains relationships with ASCO, including discounted ASCO membership for APAO members, a PA blog, PA liaison and upcoming joint symposia? Additionally, APAO continues collaboration
with COA (Community Oncology Alliance), and several other professional oncology groups! APAO
membership is less than 17¢ per day – isn’t this benefit alone worth that cost?
Please don’t hesitate. Renew your membership or join your peers as a new member TODAY! We look
forward to seeing you at our next event.