Haymarket Media And National Coalition Of Oncology Nurse Navigators Announce New Educational Partnership

NEW YORK, Oct. 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Haymarket Media Inc. (HMI) and the National Coalition of Oncology Nurse Navigators (NCONN) have formed a partnership to collaborate on a wide variety of educational initiatives for the oncology health professionals they serve.

Under the agreement:

• Haymarket's Oncology Nurse Advisor (ONA), a multimedia resource for oncology nurses and other cancer clinicians, will be the official publication of NCONN. All coalition members will receive the journal upon request.
• A column will be written in each issue of ONA by a nurse navigator.
• ONA and Haymarket will manage all aspects of the NCONN annual conference
• Haymarket will have exclusive license to reproduce and sell NCONN's Core Competencies in both print and digital formats
• The organizations will collaborate in marketing and promoting educational resources for oncology nurses and oncology nurse navigators.   

Nurse navigators are health professionals who help patients understand their disease, follow their treatment regimen, and find the resources needed to manage their life as well as their health. In addition, nurse navigators help bridge care and information gaps in the community, encouraging people to utilize screening and preventive programs that ensure better health outcomes.

"NCONN's success has been built on partnerships from the beginning—partnerships with other nurse navigators, health care providers, industry, and the patients and families we care for each day," said Sharon Francz, BHA, Executive Director, President, and Co-founder of NCONN. "As the first association to support the oncology nurse navigator, NCONN provides the essential tools and resources that navigation programs need every step of the way in their growth and development. We are excited to announce this partnership with ONA and Haymarket Media, a leader in providing late-breaking oncology news, safe handling and administration of chemotherapy drugs, side effect management, and new developments in specific cancers."

In both digital and print versions, ONA provides clinical insights to help oncology professionals deliver better care and provides a forum where they can share information on coping with the unique challenges and stresses of their profession. www.OncologyNurseAdvisor.com is a robust Web site updated daily with oncology news and features, reports on research, updates on clinical trials, information on drugs and drug administration, and insights into key nursing trends. ONA also appears 6 times a year in print; the journal has been recognized nationally as a top publication for oncology nurses.

Chad Holloway, Publisher of Haymarket Oncology, said, "We are thrilled by the opportunity to partner with a world-class organization like NCONN, which supports essential navigation resources for cancer patients and their families and caregivers. NCONN blazed the trail for oncology nurse navigation and has been a consistent force for moving the profession forward. We look forward to making ONA's resources available to NCONN's growing membership and to engaging in a mutually beneficial educational alliance."

About Oncology Nurse Navigators and NCONN
Harold P. Freeman, MD, implemented the first patient navigation program approximately 25 years ago in a small hospital in Harlem, NY. Dr. Freeman started a navigation program for impoverished black women who presented with late-stage breast cancer; this program considerably improved survival rates and decreased mortality. Institutions and clinics around the country have since recognized the value of patient navigation and have added nurse navigators to help guide oncology patients through each point of care.  With few sources of professional support for nurse navigators, five oncology nurses in the Washington, DC, Maryland, and northern Virginia area recognized this gap and founded NCONN in 2008, the first organization to provide such support to oncology nurses,  social workers, and case managers and others helping to guide the cancer patient's journey.

Today, NCONN, based in Rockville, MD, has over 1,200 members. The organization's mission is to promote excellence in oncology patient care by fostering collaborative relationships and professional development among oncology nurse navigators and all health care disciplines locally, regionally, and nationally.  NCONN seeks to be the leader in establishing standards that define the oncology nurse navigator role. The organization holds an annual meeting for nurse navigators, which presents an excellent opportunity for navigators to learn and network with their peers.  For more information about NCONN, visit www.nconn.org.

About Oncology Nurse Advisor and Haymarket Media Inc.
Oncology Nurse Advisor is published by Haymarket Media Inc. (HMI), a global publication and communications company with operations on five continents. Founded in 1957 and headquartered in the United Kingdom, with US operations based in New York City, HMI publishes titles in 23 languages in more than 100 nations. In the US, HMI publishes a number of oncology journals, including Oncology Nurse Advisor, ChemotherapyAdvisor.com, and MPR Hematology/Oncology Edition.

SOURCE Haymarket Media Inc.