LANCE ARMSTRONG FOUNDATION FUNDS EPEC-O TRAIN-THE TRAINER WORKSHOP

AUSTIN, Texas - June 13, 2005 - To help optimize care for patients throughout the course of their illnesses, the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) joins Northwestern University, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the National Cancer Institute to fund the Education in Palliative and End-of-life Care (EPEC-O) Train-the-Trainer Workshop on June 13-15, 2005, in Reston, Virginia.

The EPEC-O Train-the-Trainer Workshop provides tools for physicians to teach colleagues and team members about setting goals, resolving conflict, combining antineoplastic therapy and palliative care, managing pain and symptoms, discussing clinical trails and preventing professional burnout.

"Quality palliative and end-of-life care for people living with cancer is critical," said Doug Ulman, director of survivorship at the LAF.  "We are pleased to support the EPEC-O Train-the-Trainer Workshop so that doctors will have access to the necessary training and tools so they can, in turn, provide comprehensive care to their patients." 

A survey on the ASCO website reports that fewer than 25 percent of doctors who were trained after 1990, including cancer specialists, said they received formal end-of-life training in medical school courses.  The survey further notes that fewer than 50 percent said they received end-of-life training during hospital rotations. 

Workshop attendees receive information and resources for providing optimal, comprehensive care for patients through plenary sessions and educational modules that combine didactic sessions, videotape presentations, interactive discussion and practical exercises.

About EPEC-O Train-the-Trainer
The End-of-life Care (EPEC-O) Train-the-Trainer workshop is a unique educational event that gives cancer care professionals the necessary knowledge and skills to train other about the best practice in supportive oncology and end-of-life care. Its learning objectives are:

• Describe the scope of knowledge, attitudes and skills that comprise the core palliative care competencies needed throughout the course of comprehensive cancer care.
• Synthesize the key teaching techniques most effective in transmitting that core knowledge to other healthcare professionals.
• Demonstrate key teaching techniques in dissemination of the EPEC-O Curriculum.

For more information, visit www.asco.org/epeco.