Six new Bristol-Myers Squibb grants to reduce cancer disparities in CEE

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation today announced six new grants totaling more than $900,000 that focus on improving cancer awareness, prevention and care by developing cancer nursing skills and building nurse-community partnerships in Hungary, Poland, Romania and Russia. The funding is a result of the 2011 request for proposals issued by Bridging Cancer Care^™, an umbrella program for the Foundation's efforts to help reduce cancer disparities in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Organizations receiving funding are:

Hungarian Hospice Foundation will engage general practice nurses in efforts to encourage Roma people to participate in cervical, breast and prostate cancer screenings and to seek cancer care services when needed

National School of Public Health, Management and Professional Development will adapt and implement the U.S. model of the Oncology Nurse Navigator in Romania

Project Hope Poland will help improve early detection of cancer in children by training community nurses and primary healthcare teams

Romanian Cancer Society will train nurses on how to disseminate information on prevention, early diagnosis, treatment guidelines and follow-up for stomach, colon, and melanoma cancers to their communities

University of Washington will partner with Bashkir State Medical University in Russia to train nurses in evidence-based oncology nursing practices

World Services of La Crosse will help improve nursing skills and expand the scope of nursing practice in Russian primary care clinics

"Nurses are an integral part of the health care system and have the potential to significantly influence patient outcomes," said John Damonti, president, Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation and vice president, Corporate Philanthropy, Bristol-Myers Squibb. "Through our 2011 Bridging Cancer Care^™ Request for Proposals, we were looking for innovative solutions that elevate the participation of nurses in patient education and care and help reduce disparities in health outcomes of cancer patients in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Russia. The projects we selected will improve education and training for nurses and patients and, ultimately, maximize the role nurses play in reducing the burden of cancer and helping to control the disease."