Hope Through Grace - National Advisory Board

National Advisory Board

	Bernard Levin, M.D. Professor Emeritus M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Dr. Levin earned his medical degree in 1964 from the University of the Witwatersrand Medical School in Johannesburg, South Africa. He held academic appointments at the University of Chicago from 1972 until 1984, when he joined the faculty at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. He served as chair of the Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology and Digestive Diseases until 1994 when he was appointed as Vice President for Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences. He retired from MD Anderson Cancer Center in November, 2007 and has been appointed as Professor Emeritus. He is Chair of the American Cancer Society’s National Advisory Task Force on Colorectal Cancer and was chair of the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable from 1998-2005. Levin served as President of the International Society of Gastrointestinal Carcinogenesis from 2005-2006. In 2007, he accepted an appointment as the founding Chair of the World Gastroenterology Organization Foundation whose mission is to raise funds for the training of gastroenterologists in low resource countries. He currently resides in New York City. Levin has published more than 260 articles, and edited 10 books. He served as an editor of Colorectal Cancer in Clinical Practice: Prevention, Early Detection and Treatment which was published in 2002 with a second edition published in 2005. He is co-editor of the textbook Gastrointestinal Oncology published in 2002 with a second edition scheduled for publishing in 2008. He is lead editor of a recent book entitled “American Cancer Society’s Complete Guide to Colorectal Cancer” that was published in Dec., 2005. Levin currently serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, and Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Levin’s research interests include seeking molecular markers for detection of colorectal cancer, chemoprevention of colorectal neoplasia and developing better methods for enhancing public awareness of colorectal cancer prevention.

	Erica Childs, M.P.H. Director Evaluation & Outreach Prevent Cancer Foundation Check back in a short while for photo and bio.
	Ronald C. Colman, M.D. Gastroenterologist Diagnostic Clinic of Houston Check back in a short while for bio.

	Margo Hilliard, M.D., M.P.H. Sr. V.P. of Community Services Harris County Hospital District Dr. Hilliard is Senior Vice President of Community Services for the Harris County Hospital District (HCHD) in Houston, Texas. Hilliard began her career with HCHD in 1988 as Administrator of Jefferson Davis Hospital. In June, 1989, she was named Administrator of Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital where she served for 17 years. Notable accomplishments during her tenure include opening one of the nation’s first ambulatory clinics for HIV/AIDs patients and securing designation by the State of Texas of LBJ General Hospital as the first Level III Trauma center in Texas. Most recently, Hilliard served as one of five founding members of a community-wide collaborative, Gateway to Care, with the shared goal of ensuring access to care for an estimated 1.5 million uninsured and underinsured residents of Harris County. With federal funds obtained through this collaborative, Hilliard and LBJ nurse administrator, Moranda Dansby, opened the first telephone nurse advice service for uninsured residents of Harris County. Today Gateway to Care includes more than 170 public and private organizations and is the recipient of several federal and philanthropic grants designed to improve the region’s capacity for primary care, to enhance patient access to appropriate care, and to reduce the burden of uncompensated care on area hospitals and emergency centers. A native of Houston, Hilliard is a board certified pediatrician and holds an appointment as Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at The University of Texas Medical School-Houston. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Texas Southern University. Hilliard received her medical degree from the State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, and a Master’s degree in public health from the University of California at Berkley. She completed her residency in pediatrics at New York Hospital/Cornell Medical School and Baylor College of Medicine, and a fellowship in pediatric infectious disease at Baylor College of Medicine. Hilliard is a member of the Harris County Medical Society, the National Medical Association, Houston Medical Forum, and the National Association of Public Hospitals (NAPH), where she served on the Executive Board of Directors. In addition, she is active on the boards of two local non-profit community organizations, Community Health Choice, and the Northwest Assistance Ministries. Hilliard has also served as Assistant Director of the Division of Personal Health Services for the City of Houston’s Department of Health & Human Services, and as the Physician-in-Chief for the Acres Home Community Health Center. She is a frequent speaker on public health care and health disparities affecting the uninsured, and has received numerous awards and recognitions for her leadership and service to vulnerable populations.
	Lewis Foxhall
	Judith Blanchard, MS Judie Blanchard, MS, provides consulting services in health promotion, education, and outreach. She designs, coordinates, facilitates, and delivers training programs for health care professionals, patients, and consumers and develops educational materials for professionals as well as for individuals with varying literacy and language skills. Most recently, she initiated the development of the conceptual framework for the Dialogue for Action program. This program is designed to strengthen the capacity of states and American Indian/Alaska Native communities to meet their cancer control objectives for increasing colorectal cancer screening in their underserved populations. The program concentrates on engaging the broad diversity of stakeholders throughout a state or tribal community in a highly interactive and collaborative process that concludes with tangible action steps for moving a state or tribal community forward. Thus far she has worked with 17 state and 10 tribal teams. This program has been adapted for other topics and organizations as well. Ms. Blanchard offers over 25 years of health promotion and health education experience combined with writing and editing expertise. She has worked in the public and private sectors and at the community, state, and national levels and has designed programs and written for highly educated professionals as well as for the average consumer.

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