2017  LEADERSHIP SUMMIT & GENERAL ASSEMBLY

March 16 – 19, 2017

The Sickle Cell Community Consortium is pleased to announce the 2017 Leadership Summit & General Assembly of Advocates and Community-based organizations (CBOs). The Consortium is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit collective of Sickle Cell Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), Community Partners, Sponsored Patient Organizations, Patient/Caregiver Advocates and Healthcare/Research Advisors- each dedicated to sickle cell advocacy, education, research, community awareness and patient support throughout the country.

The Consortium was created to provide an organizing arm to enable our communities to identify and address local and national needs. Patterned after the United Nations, and following a model of Collective Impact, we provide a platform to “amplify the power of the patient voice”. As part of this collaborative effort, we are excited to host the 2017 Leadership Summit and General Assembly, March 16-19, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. This meeting is open to the public. You are invited to join us as we continue to effect patient-powered change in our community.

The Leadership Summit and General Assembly is the main meeting of the Consortium, during which patient and caregiver-identified priorities are defined. All Consortium partners from throughout the country gather annually to participate in this meeting. We use this time to provide training and best practices session on:

• Effective advocacy in the rare disease space
• Maintaining strong sickle cell CBOs.

Participants also participate in the business meeting of the Consortium and the annual General Assembly of Advocates and CBOs. The General Assembly is the primary organ and decision-making body of the Consortium. Comprised of partnered CBOs, sponsored patient organizations, and patient and caregiver advocates, this group is tasked with defining and prioritizing the top needs and gaps within the sickle cell community; developing community-based solutions; and identifying the CBO, community and corporate partnerships best equipped to execute those solutions. Working in partnership with healthcare/research advisers and community partners, patients, caregivers and CBOs lead the teams dedicated to tackling each priority.

This year we are excited to launch our CLINICAL TRIALS INITIATIVE as a continuation of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Initiative of 2016. The focus of our Patient-Centered Outcomes Initiative is two-fold:

•  Direct involvement of Patients and Caregivers in topic generation and prioritization for Patient-Centered Outcomes Research
•  Patient-focused development of Alternative Endpoints and Surrogate Markers in Clinical Trial Design

As we move into the next phase of this initiative, we will apply the collective power of the Patient, Caregiver and CBO General Assembly to define patient-identified barriers to minority participation in clinical trials. Our strength is in our unity. Drawing upon existing research, and in partnership with the Consortium network of community partners and healthcare/research advisers, we will tackle the social constructs and deeply rooted misconceptions that inform patient/caregiver opinion and impede increased participation in clinical trials.

For more information, to register to attend, or sponsorship information, please contact Dr. Lakiea Bailey at Director@sicklecellconsortium.org. We look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

Lakiea J Bailey, Ph.D.

Executive Director

Sickle Cell Community Consortium