Jennifer Currin-McCulloch

Discipline: Social Worker

Funding awarded to: Colorado State University

Through the Lens (TTL): A Participatory Action Photovoice Intervention for Young Adults Living with Cancer

The overall goal is to disseminate and implement a nationwide participatory action photovoice project that aims to enhance young adult cancer survivors’ sense of belonging, hope, purpose, and their self-efficacy in advocating for their physical and psychosocial wellbeing. The project will pursue the following three aims: (1) to train and mentor mental health providers to serve as facilitators in the implementation of TTL with young adult cancer survivors; (2) to enhance young adult cancer survivors’ sense of belonging, hope, and purpose through their participation in a virtual group intervention in their local community; and (3) to mobilize young adult survivors’ self-efficacy in advocating for their physical and psychosocial needs through a national Young Adult Palliative Care Advocacy Campaign. The expected outcome is to enable the public to gain awareness of the triumphs and obstacles related to living with cancer in young adulthood.

My vision for my future in palliative care centers on my leadership in fostering existential wellbeing for all Young Adults (Yas) living with serious illnesses such as cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, HIV, and cancer. The chance to carry out my YA palliative care photovoice leadership project will provide an unprecedented opportunity to collect and present a repository of YA survivors’ photographic and written narratives to advocate for social and political change. Through the rich environment afforded through the Sojourns Scholar Leadership program’s training and mentoring, I will be able to strategically move beyond my roots as an oncology leader and foster existential quality of life among YAs living with nonmalignant serious illnesses.