As Director-at-Large, I have the pleasure of overseeing AOSW’s Special Interest Groups (SIGs) and the SIG Leaders. We have been busy working together to plan new ways to enhance the meaningfulness of the SIGs. In the past few years there have been many changes to the ways SIG information is provided to members. And—we have been diligently working to orient new SIG leaders while also supporting longtime leaders through these changes.
The SIGs are an added AOSW membership benefit. They serve as a resource for members in a particular subspecialty area and they facilitate the sharing of resources and information, which can enhance the work we do as oncology social workers.
There have been many changes in how the SIGs communicate, where SIG information can be found and who the SIG leaders are. We are grateful for the many new leaders who have stepped up to lead these groups, as well as those who have remained a steady force throughout all of these changes.
Historically, information about the SIGs had been easy to find on the AOSW website; at some point, however, it became buried and more difficult to locate. Through advocacy and the assistance of AOSW’s management staff, the SIGs now have their prominence back on the website. They have a tab on the main web page making them more visible than previously. AOSW members have access to SIG information and resources that are posted under each SIG: www.aosw.org/special-interest-groups-(sigs).
In an effort to increase the meaningfulness of the SIGs, its leaders are working to recruit a small group of SIG members to form SIG “working groups.” These groups will focus on special projects related to the SIG specialty. The first task will be to review, update and add to SIG information and resources listed on the AOSW website. Once this initial task is completed, the working groups will identify other projects. We hope for communication among working group members and brainstorming of ideas to enhance this member benefit. If you are interested in becoming more actively involved in your SIG, please contact the designated SIG leaders or me for more information.
In other SIG news, we are working to finalize the revision of the SIG policy, SIG leader application process and the application process to request a new SIG. If a member identifies a specialty area in which AOSW could benefit from forming a new SIG, please contact me to discuss the requirements and the process.
Some members may recall that AOSW introduced the “SIG Communities” a few years ago as a potential vehicle for communication and resource sharing among SIG members. These communities have not worked in the way administration had hoped and are not active at this time. The AOSW Board of Directors along with the SIG leaders are evaluating the needs of our members and whether a different communication platform is necessary. If needed, we will investigate alternatives that may work better for our organization. We thank you for your patience with these changes and growing pains.
Many thanks to all of our SIG Leaders for your willingness to volunteer your time to help make AOSW such a wonderful organization. I like the quote below and think it applies to all our volunteers who give their time to make AOSW the kind of organization in which we all want to be.
“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.” ~Author Unknown
The current SIGs and SIG leaders:
AYA SIG
Meghan Fitzgibbons, MSW, LICSW
301.295.6335
meghan@ulmanfund.org
Alexandra Gubin, MSW, LCSW-C
443.287.2485
agubin1@jhmi.edu
AmbulatoryCare/Fee-for-Service
Brittany Moore, LSW
412.641.1926
Moorebj2@mail.magee.edu
Rhonda Hylton, LSW, MSW, OSW-C
717.724.6790
rhylton@pinnaclehealth.org
Blood Cancer/BMT SIG
Paula Brumback, MSW, LCSW
407.303.2078
Paula.Brumback@flhosp.org
Melissa Sommers, MSW, LCSW
720.590.390
melissa.sommers@healthonecares.com
Brain Tumor SIG
Grier Hock, LCSW
336.832.0950
elizabeth.hock@conehealth.com
Children & Cancer SIG
Mary E. Turney, LCSW
813.745.7247
mary.turney@moffitt.org
Ethics SIG
Christina Bach, MBE, MSW, LCSW, OSW-C
267.438.2417
christina.bach@uphs.upenn.edu
Lind Roberts, MDiv, MSW, LCSW, OSW-C
lindaroberts05@gmail.com
Integrative Oncology SIG
Cheryl Ann Hughes, LICSW, OSW-C
202.444.3020
Cheryl.A.Hughes@gunet.georgetown.edu
Marianne Stenhouse, LCSW, OSW-C
720-.64.283
Maristenhouse@gmail.com
Pain, Palliative Care, and End-of-Life SIG
Jackie Ogg, MSW, LGSW
301.537.5627
jackieo@rcn.com
Patient Navigation SIG
Cara Kondaki, MSW, LCSW, ACSW, CBPN-IC, OSW-C
954.487.2236
kondakc@ccf.org
Radiation Therapy SIG
Lauren DeWitt, MSW
904.277.2700
laurend@ackermancancer.com
Chelsea Foote, LCSW
Phone:904-428-0157
chelsea@ackermancancer.com
Research SIG (formerly SWORG)
Elizabeth Rohan, PhD, MSW
770.438.3053
erohan@cdc.gov
Sexuality SIG
Sage Bolte, PhD, LCSW, OSW-C
703.698.2531
Sage.Bolte@inova.org
Chris Anrig, MSSW, LCSW-R
212.610.0347
anrigc@mskcc.org
Spirituality SIG
Debbie Mattison, LMSW, OSW-C
734.763.1624
debmatt@umich.edu