AORTIC Advocacy Special Interest Group

Mission

The Mission of the AORTIC Advocacy SIG is to improve care and outcomes (survival and survivorship) of cancer patients across Africa through active engagement of patient advocates embedded throughout health care and research/clinical trial systems.

Objectives

  1. To place patients are at the center of all AORTIC effects, activities, initiative, and goals
  2. To include patient voices prominently and meaningfully throughout AORTIC
  3. To provide ongoing training (to include mentorship) of patients, caregivers, family members, and others across Africa to be active, skilled patient advocates who serve in numerous capacities that put the patient, unique experience-based patient voices, and patient concerns at the center of all deliberations
  4. To enhance awareness of and understanding of the value of patient advocacy
  5. To strengthen the network of patient advocacy groups across Africa and to form and enhance partnerships and collaborations within and beyond Africa that promote the AORTIC and Advocacy SIG mission and objectives
  6. To ensure conduct of the highest quality, patient-centered and -prioritized, ethical clinical trials throughout Africa that work toward the greatest likelihood of patient benefit
  7. To ensure that patient advocates are embedded throughout the emerging clinical trials system across Africa
  8. To ensure that the Advocacy SIG mission and all the above objectives converge to benefit cancer patients, both in terms of survival (how long we live) and survivorship (the quality of our survival/how well we live)

Plans for 2019 – Year 1

  1. To develop an Advocacy SIG Steering Committee with a maximum of 7 members
  2. To develop a Strategic Plan in consultation with willing advocacy groups and advocates currently engaged with AORTIC (to include plans to seek funding to fulfill the mission and specific Advocacy SIG objectives, in consultation with and with the approval of the AORTIC Council)
  3. To define “patient advocacy” in Africa-specific contexts and promote understanding of its potential meaningful roles and opportunities
  4. To extend the outreach and reach of patient advocacy activities to encourage and invite advocacy groups throughout Africa to engage or work with AORTIC


For more information, contact info@aortic-africa.org.