February 17, 2026 Minutes

Last Post

Karen Jovanelly

(@jovkaren)

Joined: 3 months ago

Posts: 3

Topic starter February 19, 2026 3:21 pm

Welcome

Vanessa Aron welcomed newest members Kasey Fifield and Angel Correa. She offered them the opportunity to introduce themselves to the team.

Agenda

Workgroup Updates

Around 2020 the POQC team was tasked to identify key challenges and develop solutions in cancer care. This process led to the formation of three dedicated workgroups, whose ongoing projects are briefly outlined below:

Financial Navigation

Originally known as Financial Toxicity, this group launched two major initiatives:

Training Sessions: Led by Dan Sherman (Navectis), these sessions were popular, resulting in a waitlist. In 2025, the team partnered with MDHHS to offer this class and the hope is to offer one additional session in 2026.
Patient Advocacy Foundation (PAF): Interviews were held within practices to evaluate how and if patient assessments include non-medical needs.

Tammy Cedo and Mike Harrison noted their appreciation for the commitment shown by practices and how the practices expressed interest in further improving appointment experiences for patients.

Patient and Caregiver Resources

In collaboration with the E4 Center, this workgroup developed a Caregiver Navigation Training series. These one-hour sessions focus on specific topics. Participants can choose to attend all sessions or those of particular interest. POQC members are also invited to share a short story to introduce topics if there is a topic that fits with their own lived experience. If interested, reach out to Ashley Bowen or Vanessa Aron for more details.

February 25, 2026 - Common Challenges in Caregiving
March 4, 2026 - Compassion Fatigue
March 11, 2026 - Grief and Loss
March 18, 2026 - Cultural and Language Considerations
March 25, 2026 - Managing Caregiver Need

The group has also helped to develop a search engine with over 150 resources for patients and caregivers.

Recruitment and Retention

Tracey Cargill-Smith reported the addition of 6 new POQC members in 2025, with 4 potential new members for 2026. The team has given a new look to The POQC Post, to improve communication and transparency.

Looking forward, the group is developing educational modules to keep members informed and empowered and is considering updates to POQC group agreements.

Tracey thanked members for their dedication and looks forward to a productive 2026.

Llewellyn Drong raised a question about recruiting members from the UP and the tribal communities. Vanessa indicated this is a focus during Superior regional meetings and welcomes additional recruitment suggestions.

Invitation

Vanessa encouraged anyone interested in learning more about these workgroups to reach out for further information or to shadow a meeting.

Guest Speakers

Comfort Cuisine

Ashley provided an overview of the Comfort Cuisine program, which was piloted in 2023 to support individuals and caregivers experiencing food insecurity. This initiative offers meals, education and resources to patients and their caregiver during chemotherapy. The Comfort Cuisine program has recently received additional funding from MDHHS.

Larrea Young and Noa Kim joined the discussion to elaborate on the program’s development. With assistance from the POQC team, they created the Comfort Box and accompanying resources. The POQC team played a vital role in naming the program, designing the box contents, and selecting vendors. Mom’s Meals was chosen as the partner and contributed significantly to the project’s success.

Larrea presented plan to refine the Comfort Box, recommending the removal of plasticware and the addition of placemats. A robust discussion followed. It was suggested that the plasticware remain in the Comfort Box, and other additions will be considered for the future.

Additionally, Larrea proposed creating or updating a one-sheet reference page listing items helpful during cancer treatment, so that more suggestions can be included in the Comfort Box.

MOQC Updates

VBR Scorecard Development – VBR is how practices can be compensated for MOQC participation.
- Mondays 2:00-3:00pm Virtual
- All interested POQC members are invited to attend. Reach out to Vanessa for more information.
The Magic of POQC Updates
- March 24^th 6:00-7:00pm Virtual
- All interested POQC members are invited to attend. Calendar events have been sent to all POQC emails and a reminder will go out the week of.
Gas Mileage Increase – POQC members are reimbursed round trip from their home address to any in person meeting they attend. Project managers and Karen Jovanelly track and calculate this, it is paid quarterly.
- 0 cents to 72.5 cents
Spring MOQC Meetings
- GYN Biannual: March 11^th – 8:00am-12:30pm
- WOW Regional: March 25^th – 6:00pm-7:30pm
- LMOR Regional: April 6^th – 6:00pm-7:30pm
- Metro East Regional: April 13^th – 6:00pm-7:30pm
- CMG Regional: April 15^th – 6:00pm-7:30pm
- Superiors Regional: April 22^nd – 6:00-7:30pm
- Vanessa will reach out to individual POQC members who are not already registered to ask if there are any questions about attending regional meetings.