New Version! How to Evaluate Activities to Increase CRC Screening and Awareness: Evaluation Toolkit
We are pleased to share an updated version of the NCCRT’s Evaluation Toolkit.  This latest version of the evaluation toolkit is intended to help organizations and communities evaluate a wide variety of interventions designed to increase awareness and use of colorectal cancer screening. The toolkit will help you learn the seven basic steps to evaluation, whether you are working to increase community demand for colorectal cancer screening, encouraging health care providers to recommend screenings, or trying to implement policy, systems, or environmental (PSE) changes.  Download this new resource here.  You can also learn more about what’s new in the toolkit, by registering for today’s 2:00pm ET webinar.  See below for more details.

And special thanks to the many members of the NCCRT and other professionals who helped with contributions to the update, including: Tamar Wallace, Kara Riehman, Matt Allison,  Amy DeGroff, Djenaba Joseph, Angela Moore, Laura Makaroff, Sue Lin, Carrie Klabunde, Lindsey Enewold, Mary Barton, Sepheen Byron, Kate Mahler, Heather Brandt, Ann Zauber, Heather Dacus, Suzanne Kuon, Gina O’Sullivan, Citseko Staples, Caroline Powers, Mark Pochapin, Robert Smith, Emily Bell, Aubrey Villalobos, Kanako Kashima, Shannon Pray and Andi Dwyer.  A true team effort!

Register for Today’s June 27th Webinar Introducing the Updated Toolkit
Join us today, June 27^th at 2:00pm ET for the next NCCRT webinar, during which we will introduce the updated NCCRT Colorectal Cancer Screening Evaluation 101 Toolkit.  Registration is now open.  The purpose of the webinar is to introduce participants to the updated NCCRT Evaluation Toolkit: How to Evaluate Activities to Increase CRC Screening and Awareness, which is now available.  During the webinar, we’ll review the 7 steps to program evaluation through the lens of various colorectal cancer screening interventions, while also highlighting new case studies, tools and templates.  Content will be delivered by speakers from 2:00pm to 3:00pm ET, but speakers will stay on until 3:15pm ET to answer questions.  Speakers will include: Cheryl Holm-Hansen, Amanda Hane, Heather Dacus, Heather M. Brandt and Andrea (Andi) Dwyer.

The webinar is open to NCCRT members, 80% by 2018 partners, CDC grantees, ACS Health Systems and Communications staff, and new partners interested in getting engaged in colorectal cancer screening efforts.  You must be registered to join the webinar.  Please visit this link for more information and to register: http://nccrt.org/webinar-evaltoolkitupdate/ Join us during the webinar to learn more!

NCCRT Leadership News
We wanted to let you know that due to recovery from some health issues, Dr. Dennis Ahnen has let us know that he is unable to travel for the foreseeable future and will be reducing his work with the NCCRT to phone and email-based engagement.  He has offered to step aside from both his role as Family History/Early Onset Task Group Chair and on the Steering Committee.  However, given his amazing history, know-how, insightfulness and leadership, we have asked him to continue to co-chair the task group, along with Tom Weber and Paul Schroy, and to continue to serve on the Steering Committee as an Adjunct Steering Committee member.  If and when Dennis decides to travel again, we will gladly have him back at the table, but in the meantime, we’ll be grateful to have him participate in a remote fashion.

According to the NCCRT Bylaws, when an active Steering Committee member steps aside, the NCCRT Executive Committee appoints a new Steering Committee member to fill the position.  We have asked Anjee Davis of Fight CRC to fill the role, and we are grateful that she has accepted.  Anjee has a long history with the NCCRT and currently serves as Co-Chair of the Public Awareness Task Group.  She brings a lot of energy and savvy, which we think will be helpful as we look to ramp up for the next 18 months of the 80% by 2018 effort.  Please join me in thanking Anjee for agreeing to this role!

Volunteers Needed for the NCCRT Membership Committee
The NCCRT has an opening on the Membership Committee.  The Membership Committee reviews incoming NCCRT Membership Application and makes a recommendation on the applications to the NCCRT Steering Committee on admittance.  The work entails reviewing about 10 to 15 applications a year with fall being the committee’s busiest time of year.  Please email [email protected] if you are interested in serving on this Committee.

New Map Showing 2015 UDS Rates by State!
We know some of you are eagerly awaiting the new 2016 UDS data for colorectal cancer screening rates at FQHCs, but in the meantime, we thought you might enjoy this new map showing state by state 2015 colorectal cancer screening UDS rates, (still the most current UDS data we have).  Click here to learn more.  Many thanks to Sue Lin and Laura Makaroff for providing this resource and to Caleb Levell for posting the article.

Relevant Journal Articles
Here are a few relevant journal articles that may be of interest:

Evaluating Two Evidence-Based Intervention Strategies to Promote CRC Screening Among Latino Adults in a Primary Care Setting.  A new journal article has been published in Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, entitled Evaluating Two Evidence-Based Intervention Strategies to Promote CRC Screening Among Latino Adults in a Primary Care Setting.  The article demonstrates that evidence based strategies to promote CRC Screening can be implemented successfully within FQHCs, but implementation (particularly of mailed outreach) may require setting and population specific optimization.  Congratulations to NCCRT member Dr. Samir Gupta, as well as the other authors!  Thank you to Karina Moyano for bringing this article to our attention.

Use of Community Health Workers and Patient Navigators to Improve Cancer Outcomes Among Patients Served by Federally Qualified Health Centers: A Systematic Literature Review, led by Kate Roland, MPH, shows findings that support the effectiveness of community health workers and patient navigators in promoting cancer screening.  Congratulations to NCCRT Member Amy DeGroff, as well as the other authors!

New Multisociety Task Force Recommendations for CRC Screening
The ASGE, AGA and ACG have released a new document by the Multisociety Task Force on CRC Screening http://bit.ly/2sQqPxz  The task force ranked screening tests for average-risk individuals, with colonoscopy and FIT considered to be the cornerstone tests.  The document also addresses the rise of CRC in younger patients and the rationale for screening earlier in the African-American population.  Thank you to Gina Steiner, Barry Berger and Joel Brill for bringing the new recommendations to our attention.

Register for Thursday, July 27th Webinar on Links of Care
Join us on Thursday, July 27^th at 1:00pm ET for an NCCRT webinar, during which we will share what we’ve learned so far from our Links of Care pilot project.  Registration is now open.  The Links of Care pilots seek to improve colorectal cancer screening and follow up care for uninsured and underinsured patients by strengthening relationships between community health centers and the surrounding medical neighborhood.  Speakers will include: Suzanne Lagarde, Julia Williams, Chris Singer and Kara Riehman, who will provide a brief overview of specific pilots, while also discussing implementation, workflows and lessons learned.

The webinar is open to NCCRT members, 80% by 2018 partners, CDC grantees, ACS Health Systems and Communications staff, and new partners interested in getting engaged in colorectal cancer screening efforts.  You must be registered to join the webinar.  Please visit this site to register and for additional background: http://nccrt.org/webinar-links-of-care-update/

Register for CDC’s August National Cancer Conference
There is still time to register for the 2017 National Cancer Conference to be held on August 14 through 16, 2017, at the Crowne Plaza Atlanta Perimeter at Ravinia Hotel in Atlanta. The conference is co-sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors.  The conference offers an opportunity for translating research into practice to improve public health. A wide variety of local, state, territorial, federal, academic, national, and community-based cancer prevention and control programs will be represented, creating an excellent opportunity for you to meet partners from around the country.