On this episode, Haywood talks with Steven Abrams and Dr. Lauren Kearney about the importance of screening for lung cancer. If you need assistance from the VA and are located in the Boston area, please call 617-275-6101.
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(upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) - I don't know if you would trust me. - Welcome, welcome to the other page radio, WBCALP 102.9 FM Boston. This is Hable Fennell. I'm real happy to be here today with you all. We've got some interesting guests here today that can have a strong message. You know, we want to get you involved so we want you to pay close attention to what is being said. Especially you veterans out there, you need to get a piece of paper and pencil if you don't have one so that you can write down the contact information which includes the name of my old guests. I'm going to ask them to introduce themselves and what they're about and then we can flow into the show. Okay, hello everybody in the other room. How are you guys doing? - We're doing well, thanks so much for having us today. - Beautiful summer day, thank you, sir. - Yes, sir, yes. I deliver sometimes if you play right, you'll stay right, you know what I'm saying? Who am I talking to over there? Who am I speaking with? - Hi, my name is Stephen Abrams. I am a veteran who served in the U.S. Navy as a CB and I've also served in U.S. Army retired as the heavy wheel mechanic. We call them 66 bang, bang. We pull them out the dirt if you put them in the dirt. Also, I'm a peer specialist for the choir, Center for Health Implementation and Research and I am an outreach peer for the city. - Tell us a little bit more about the choir, you know, tell us a little bit more about the choir, you know, what is the choir? Because people think that we're getting what we're saying, a song and we didn't want to be misleading here, Steve. So tell us just a little bit. - I'll preach into the choir. We like to talk about that. The choir is the organization that have, we have come together to launch several initiatives within the Department of Veteran Services and we have outside stakeholders who have been historically seeking justice for wrongs that have been created for veterans who seek equality in healthcare. We are a collaborative of doctors, veterans and peers looking to continue supporting our fellow veterans and healthcare design have one of our change agents with us and she can dig a little more deeper into where to talk about preaching to the choir. - Tell my preaching to the choir. We got a doctor coming in folks. - Absolutely. - A lady doctor. - Thanks so much for having us today. So my name is Lauren Carney. I'm a doctor at VA Boston. My specialty is lung disease. I've been associated with the VA for about 11 years now, finished all of my training through the VA and it's just been an amazing experience to train and now work through the VA. And in addition to my clinical duties, which is being in the clinic and being in the hospital, I also have the fortunate experience of working with choir which is a research organization. And the research organization as Mr. Abrams pointed out has been partnering with veterans to improve healthcare. - Let me just say something here because I want our audience to understand that you can't get your services the way that you're supposed to get them at the VA because there's a lot of experiences that have turned people off and I want to say that my guests are very much aware and all the team members are aware of that and we're trying to get you in, not where you fit in, but where you belong to be. - Absolutely, and so saying I just want to say also that it's an honor for me to have you here as our guests because you know, best than I do because you've been doing this a while longer than I have but I am a member of the co-design team for this particular situation. And I want to thank all our other team members that are not here for their participation in the meetings to try to help out veterans and get some clarity and get them involved in this program that we're going to talk about today which is very important everybody, you know, we are here at WBCALP102.9 FM Boston. This is not a calling situation, but please, if you have a friend or family member that's a veteran, call them up, put them on and so they can get this message about a situation that we believe that we can help correct, okay? So where are we folks with the co-design team, please? - Well, let me share with you some of our last outings of what we have done. Choir is a demonstrate through scientific research and implementation caring for African American veterans. A knowledge they would benefit from certain types of screening, healthcare screening and whole health initiatives. What we are today, we are designing an outreach organization that will help bring veterans back in and we do have a number that we want you to write down. If you are listening to this show, it's very important that you write this number down, get back into your healthcare benefits that you've earned. If they send you, they have to amend you. We have a phone number for our outreach director. The phone number is 617-275-6101. Once again, write it down, 617-275-6101. And that number goes directly to the Boston VA Outreach Coordinator, Colonel Dave Hanky. He's a retired Army Colonel, he gets it and he's looking forward to continue to support our choir initiatives and our research and our community partners. So that's where we are today. We are in the beginning stages of lung cancer screening, whole health initiatives and asking people to look, look at your DD-214. You are part of a great alumni. I shout that out, DD-214. Once I say it, you know what I mean. So come on in, ask the questions and these are the conversations that we need to have. So we are six months in to our co-designing. And what that is is we've asked African American veterans, we asked choir scientific partners and doctors to have a cross-cultural partnership that we can help one another, understand conversation that we need to have regarding health and whole health, wellness. It looks different for everyone, but it is achievable. And that's where we are today. We are looking for our community partners, our veteran community to just take this information and see where it goes. Your health means a lot to us and our doctors. - I wanna thank you for that. I mean, you know, like, I couldn't have said it any better myself to the importance of getting yourself checked out. - Yes. - You know, we are co-designing the project and it didn't just happen haphazardly. You know, we began to get some information and people began to become concerned and began to discuss and plan and organize. And we are here today at the other page, radio program sponsored by Triad Veterans League in association with being in media services to share this information with you. You know, and we wanted you to be very, very aware that we care. So Doc, can you give us a little more information on how we proceeding with the team? - Absolutely. And that message we care is fundamental to what I wanna get out today. My favorite part of being a doctor is getting to know my patients and learning from them. It's amazing how much more I've learned from my patients than I could ever learn in medical school. And patients really are the key to improving our healthcare system. And that's why we've decided to use co-design partner with people like Mr. Fanau with Mr. Abrams to figure out how do we get this message out about lung cancer screening and lung cancer care and how do we bring people into the VA? And this is an imperative for us to get this information out. Lung cancer is the leading cause of death, of cancer death in the United States and about 8,000 veterans are diagnosed with lung cancer every single year. But the good news is that lung cancer screening exists and for those who qualify, it can be life-saving. We're focusing on Black veterans with this project and in getting the word out because Black veterans are at higher risk of lung cancer but actually benefit more from lung cancer screening. But they're not accessing the really high quality lung cancer screening program and lung cancer care that is offered by the VA that as Mr. Abrams said, you earned and you deserve. And so we wanna get this message out to people that lung cancer screening exists and for those who qualify can really be beneficial to your health. - You know, I just wanna add, you know, I wanna say that we dare you to care. - Absolutely. - When I say that, I'm talking about a lot of times people hold grudges against the military for the treatment systemic that they were involved in. And as a direct result of that, a lot of them have stress factors in their lives which might be a contributing factor to the lung cancer that they may have and don't know. And that's why we will reach it now to you today. Mr. Abrams and the doctor and I are all on the team that cares about you and your health. You know, African American veterans are set to do treatment better than prevention. You know, but we wanted you to come out and be about trying to help yourself. - Thank you, Mr. Fanel. I'm so glad you said that because nothing should be designed about us without us in the room. Choir has included in the VA, has included us on the design team because they knew that the best help could come from veterans. Veterans who look like me, veterans who've been downrange. And I also am a chairman, I am the chairman of the National Association for Advancement of Colored People Armed Service Veterans Affair. And this past July, we've had those conversations. The United States Department of Veterans Affair in the Center for Minority Veterans signed a memorandum of an agreement, which is an historic document. And you can find it, the press released July 2023, the convention that was held here in Boston at the convention center, the NAACP convention. And that document is so historic because it began the conversation of the historical injustices that African-American veterans have gone through. I too have lost trust, but because of the efforts of the change engines, such as Dr. Kearney, and such as the team that I work on, the healthcare organization to implement research, and we make these conversations possible to share in this space. There's a lot of misnomers about, will my healthcare work for me, or will they give me the full attention that is needed? Well, those conversations are being held at the highest level, and including the memorandum of an understanding, which is a historic document. It allows veterans such as myself, Mr. Fresnel, to come in and have those conversations with directors, and have those different remedies and therapeutics that may help us. But lung cancer screening is just as important as prostate cancer screening. If you don't know, you are really playing with a ticking time bomb, because we have been exposed. We have been exposed to hazardous materials. We was taught how to smoke in the military. We was taught how to chain smoke. We never did that before, but these are some of the cultural things that military culture has brought forth. And then once we're discharged, honorably discharged, we don't really know how to manage that. So we're here to support and to help all veterans. And I'm so glad you had mentioned that, because the historical injustices, we are having those conversations that change healthcare. I'm gonna check a little break right now. We'll be right back. Are you a veteran, or do you know a veteran who is struggling with housing due to COVID-19? Veteran Zinc can help provide support services, including assistance with rent, deposits, utilities, as well as emergency housing, including hotel stays to eligible struggling veterans. If you or someone you know is in need of services, please call 1-800-482-2565, or go online to www.veteransinc.org. Put a frog in boiling water and it'll jump right out. But put a frog in cool water and slowly heat it up. That frog will boil. As veterans, we tell ourselves the lie that we can handle anything. We let the water boil. You are not a frog. If you or a veteran you know needs support, don't wait. Reach out. Find resources at va.gov/reach. That's va.gov/reach. Brought to you by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and the Ad Council. Back again with the other page of the radio. It says, "Hey, we'll mail you hosts and a veteran." And, you know, I got a lot of things to say about the building over there known as VA hospital and Jamaica Plain, and the change that I've seen over the years, improvements, if you will. You know, I was involved with the-- as the founder of Triad Veterans League, my concern involved us doing a survey, a scientific survey with a finding. And the findings weren't immediately accepted or embraced. But because of people like yourself, Dr., and a few others, Steve, we begin to see a turnaround in attitudinal changes as it relates to our veterans and their response to coming, you know. And this project that we are talking about, it's a choir project, it's very important everybody because, you know, sometimes you may not have to smoke to contact lung cancer. You know, you can get it through inhaling someone else's smoke. I'm not in depth on the scientific features, and I want you, Dr., if you don't mind, just talk a little bit more about, you know, the outreach and, you know, getting people prepared, you know, mentally to participate in these programs. Steve, you see what I'm saying? Because we're going to be out there. This is just one of many steps that we are taking to arrange a program where we can help people. Absolutely. And first, I'll just touch on, you know, we first met Mr. Fennell very early in this process. And that was very important to us to get to know our community partners early on. And I remember you sharing that survey with us. And one of the recommendations was that the VA needs to work with organizations like TriadVets to improve healthcare. And you said at what our very first meeting that everybody has to come to the castle and the castle doesn't come to the people. And that's always stuck with me. And that's a big piece of why we're actually going into the community to spread this, rather than expecting the community to always come to us. But to get to your point about smoking and what are the risk factors for lung cancer? Well, smoking is the most well known. It's the one that's been studied the most. And so that is what the guidelines are based on. So there's been several different studies that have shown that lung cancer screening is effective. And based on those studies, it's the United States Preventive Services Task Force that makes policy recommendations. They make policy recommendations about all sorts of preventive healthcare and lung cancer screening as one of those things. And based on the data, lung cancer screening is currently recommended for people who are age 50 to 80 years old, are currently or formerly smoked with quitting within the past 15 years. And have smoked a total of 20 pack years. That pack years can be really confusing to people. So I'm going to take a second to break it down just to be very clear. So a pack year basically means that you smoked one pack per day for a year. So in order to reach that 20 pack year mark, someone will have had to smoke one pack per day for 20 years or a half of a pack a day for 40 years or two packs a day for 10 years. So there's a little bit of math involved in this, which is another thing that makes this a little bit more complicated than some of our other preventive screenings. So that's the guidelines as it stands. But we know, as doctors at the VA, as policymakers at the VA and as veterans, that veterans really are concerned about these exposures that Mr. Fennell just spoke about. So we know that people were exposed to Agent Orange, asbestos, burn pits. And so we are actively looking at how do these contribute to lung cancer risk? What can we be doing to make sure that we're catching lung cancer early in these folks? And so all of this needs to be talked about with your healthcare team. So it's important that you know, lung cancer screening may be right for me, but for every single person talking to your healthcare team is vital. Because there are benefits, there are risks, there are personal decisions to be made about lung cancer screening, that your healthcare team is there to work through with you. And so we really encourage you to reach out to your healthcare team at the VA, anywhere else, in order to have this conversation to understand if you're the right person to undergo lung cancer screening. - What kind of places are we looking for, Steve, to do our outreach? - Well, we had several places on site. Somewhere in Boston, we also want to try to use the space at Fanyu Hall, Boston. - Okay. - We're constantly in negotiation and securing that location. The Harvard Community Health Center, you know, which we are not affiliated with, they have a tremendous location on the corner of Harvard and blue. - All right. - And everybody knows that facility has been a beacon of hope for our veterans. We drive by that, mostly everyday veterans that are in the community and rarely stop by. We really know what's behind those walls. And these are the conversations we need to have. Also, we're looking at places such as in Lowell, also with our partners, community partners there. Mr. Fanel, one thing I am really impressed with is your lifetime achievement award. You have been doing this. You have been putting foot to the pavement, and you have allowed veterans such as myself to take the ball further. So these are some of the spaces that we need to, we are looking at, and even our own facility, we have three tremendous campus hospitals here for veterans with state of the art care for all veterans, but especially African-American veterans, we have to begin to use the shoulders from which we stand upon to reach those goals of health equality. But it's not gonna happen for us without us. So if we don't get involved, engage, and these things will fall by the waysides. - Say that again, say that again. - If we do not get involved and engage, these will fall by the waysides because environments matters. - It doesn't happen, you said, if we're not involved. So that's an all-out folks that Brother Steve is talking about. You know, we putting together a co-designed project to deal with something that a lot of you and I are even thinking about, but it's out there now. Did you hear the figures that the doctor gave? Did you hear them? So one of the things that I like to suggest, that I will suggest to our team, is that we, and we're gonna create information that's in a brochure or in a PSA and get it in the barbershops and the beauty shops. You know, because people go in the barbershop and the beauty shop and they waiting for a haircut and we have a brochure there or they see a PSA on the television saying, we care about you. We want you to come up to the center on Blue Hill Avenue because I know what you're talking about. - Yes, sir. - I know what you're talking about. I was up there the other day, you know, and we need to look, folks, are you gonna see us? Are you gonna see our information out there? This is just the first step to let you know that the folks are working together to put together something that's gonna make us healthier. We wanna make sure that you don't have that. We don't want you to worry about it, we want you to come in and declare yourself ready to help yourself. We can't make you do anything, but we are going to make it our business to try to help you become healthier and do the outreach that we're gonna put in place for our community. - Absolutely. I agree and those numbers are shocking. In fiscal year 2023, 84% of all black veterans who applied for physical or mental health benefits were given assistance by the VA compared to 89.4% of their white counterparts who applied. But the VA data includes information dating back to fiscal year 2017, which shows that white veterans have had higher granite rates than their black counterparts ever had. And when I started seeing those numbers, I began to realize when I first came back from overseas and the lack of support that I received, I went to care and they told me to come back in three months. I didn't have three months. So when I seen these numbers, they really jumped out at me, Mr. Fresnel. And these are the processes that we are doing with co-design. We are talking about these numbers. We are building cross-cultural partnerships. We have a code of ethic because I'm an NCO. And you know, those NCOs, non-commissioned offices, we are the workforce of the military. So outside the military, I'm also an NCO. And we deal with it all. So we're talking about gender affirming care, the LGBTQ veterans of color. And this is the turning point. You are the key and choir is one of the vehicles that we are using to get that information out. Let our veterans know it's okay to talk about it. If there has been harmed, we will talk about the harm and move forward. So we have a number that we want you to call 617-275-6101. - Share your gift. - 617-275-6101. This is the director of all outreach of VA Boston, Colonel Dave Hanky. And he will direct you and make sure you get in touch with myself or the team, the choir team. And we will go down and track this together. We always ask, check the checker. Who checked that? So all my veterans and my alumni, my brothers and my sisters, our female veterans, our male veterans, our transgender veterans, all those veterans who encompass serving this great country, we have to begin to mend because they sent us. - Begin to mend folks. I like that we're coming up with these one liners here, but the bottom line is we want to help you. That's the bottom line, we want to help you help yourself. And we want you to know that we are getting ready to do a full blast on strategies and ways in which to make this outreach program in your neighborhood. You know, because it's very important that you get this. You know, it's very important that you get away with all, get rid of all those anxieties about doctors and surveys, and just come on in and sit down and go through the process. And if you need care, further care, we're going to direct you to that. And if you don't need any care about a way they, any suspicion that you might have had, that you are, you know, are not, you know, that you are cancer free, put it like that. But you know, the team that we have, oh, I feel real good about working with you guys. Thank you. You know, and I want people to understand that we care about our veterans because they serve. Absolutely, yes. You know, and you've got people that are maybe not necessary veterans, but because of the situation being what it is, they become veterans to the osmosis process. You know what I mean, you know, because we hear these stories and we hear about people, oh, I don't want to go over there, they ain't going to do nothing about this and as you go to be a hospital, it's like going to the graveyard. That might have been a time for that. I'm not going to argue with you about anything, but what I'm going to say is that we are here and we intend to do this program to bring you in so that you can understand what's going on with your body. The figures do not lie. One in one is true. And it's probably even bigger than that because of fears that people have of finding out that there is something wrong with them. You know, so let's look at this right here as a helping force getting ready to turn things around and your life will be better, your anxieties will be gone because we will be able through this process, put together by this co-designer team to help you. - Absolutely. I mean, the teamwork of this group is just incredible and the power of the teamwork is incredible. And that's what you find even in your VA health care as it's all about the team. So I'm a doctor, but I work on a large team that helps bring healthcare to our veterans. And you know, the co-design for this program, we're working to figure out how we can do community events that brings this information directly to veterans where they're at. And then Mr. Abrams will be working with some of those veterans to connect them directly to the VA. But many of the other statistics he's saying are other projects that choir has already started to work on because we wanna know what's important to veterans and then use our expertise to solve those problems. Expertise of you, expertise of us, we all have expertise and that's what makes the team so powerful. - That's so, that's so, would help eliminate my fears, Mr. Fennell, and to my veteran community, cross-cultural partnership as Dr. Kearney was talking about. - I love that, I love that, I love that. - And this is what this is what it's all about. It helped eliminate my fears. I was more confident in weapons checking a tank than when sitting in a provider's office and about to tell them the boogeyman story. You know, I have been able to eliminate the fears of not being heard. Finding out my fellow veterans, you are the key. You know, the turning point, the great Maya Angelou said, we as a people must remember to laugh just as much as we cry. And a lot of people not knowing in one day finding out you may have cancer. There's gonna be some crying and some doubting going on, but we're here to help circumvent that and give you this information, come to you with this great co-design team. Now, we reach across the country. We have designers in DC, we have designers in North Carolina, we have designers in other parts of the state. You know, we continue to beat the drum, continue to beat the drum until it is heard. There's no excuses, but there are reasons why we fall behind in healthcare disparities. There are reasons why systematic racism has been engraved in the policies of recovery and healthcare. We understand that, and those are the conversations we need to have at the cookout. And you have to come and get screened, you have to come and get checked out, and you're gonna see people that look like you, talk like you, eat like you, and we can have those conversations. But also, you're gonna have cross-cultural partners who identify as providers, who identify as change agents, and they want to hear your story. They wanna know how to, because we don't know how to without you. So please, take down this number, 617-275-6101. When Colonel Hanky answers the phone, you just call him the NCO told you to act for choir. And you veterans, you know, the Army, Army strong, I have to say I'm Army. So if you wouldn't, different branch, you can come on this show and we'll talk about your branch. But Mr. Fennell, you know how we go. (laughing) Thank you, thank you. So please. - Take a little break, we'll be right back. - Oscar Michonne Family Theater Program Company welcomes those seeking to learn about theater and performance. We offer classes that bring out your talent and improve it. Wanna get involved in theater production, acting or singing? Then you can visit our website at BOMTC.com. That's T-H-E-O-M-T-C.com. - W-B-C-A-L-P 102.9 FM Boston. That's us and we're here today with the choir co-design team. But I wanna just talk about another thing right now, if I could, and I should. I wanna talk about the strategy that Triad Veterans League is involved in around raising the awareness of the patriotism of African American veterans from Massachusetts, in particular, the 54th Volunteer Regiment. That was a part of the Civil War. And they were fighters and they had a hard time. They didn't wanna give them the uniforms or the guns, but when they gave them to them, they were decisive factor in the Civil War. We also wanna talk about how do we get to create a commemorative United States postage stamp. We have been meeting and organizing with the elected officials, and we now have the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for the Commonwealth for Massachusetts. The Secretary or the Commissioner, if you will, the veterans affairs for the city of Boston. We have the governor's office involved now. We thank the Joint Center out at UMass Boston, the William & Rottrotter Institute at UMass Boston. So many people see the commemorative stamp as a way of educating people about the history of the African American contribution, particularly those that come from the Commonwealth for Massachusetts. Also, we are reaching out with our petition. We have a petition and we're asking you to sign it. We're getting organizational support. We'll be meeting with some other people in the weeks coming to prepare a strategy that's gonna be national in scope. And we just want you to know that Triad Veterans League is the lead sponsor. I am the curator for the art that's involved, that we commissioned artists for humanity to create these images with the help of master artists, Stephen Hamilton, who's over at Harvard now, but he's a great guy. And these young people put together this art exhibit that was the first place that we showed it was at the Strand Theatre a few years ago. And then we introduced the young people and elected officials were there. A lot of people from the community was there. And we want that same kind of fervor for the project that we are now undertaking to create a United States commemorated stamp series that will educate not just the people in the Commonwealth, but the people in the nation that we fought for. We want to just heighten that. And so I just wanted to bring you up to date that we're gonna be there. And when we are out into the community with our survey document for the cancer research, we're gonna be seeking your signature. You know, we're trying to put some muscle on the veterans in place, man. It's because see, people have looked over our veterans and veterans have looked over themselves, but we're trying to heal that. - Absolutely. - So we can deal with it. And so I'm back with our guest now, Doc. She's been under 11 years. She said, "You would be a probably a general." (laughing) - That's right. - She probably be a major general. Now, Doc, tell us a little bit about your experience. Over there, will you? - Yeah, so I mean, like I said, my favorite thing about being a doctor is getting to know my patients. And I think veterans, really, when you'd spend the time with them, they let you into their lives pretty quickly. So I get to hear everything from the history of their service to what's going on with their home life, to some really hard things that our veterans go through. And that has been instrumental. Like I said, I trained in the VA. And the VA is actually one of the largest training institutions for our doctors. There's so many VA hospitals, and it's where a lot of doctors actually learn how to become doctors. And the veterans are such a huge part of that, and it's been such an amazing experience to have the privilege to take care of our veterans. So as I've kind of gone from each step of my career, I've always thought about how do I keep the VA within my practice so that I can keep connecting with veterans who are just so special and give so much to us as doctors that we really owe them so much back. - Right, we wanna thank Steve for bringing up the Howard Street Veteran Center on Blue Hill Avenue. And I'm looking forward to us being able to build with other healthcare centers and take the veterans that don't want to come to the VA, but instead go to the hospitals in the community and not say that they're veterans which displaces people from getting the treatment that a veteran, if eligible, can get at the VA. So it's a job that we have to do. - Yeah, and we heard that loud and clear. So one of the big pieces of these community outreach events is going to be that we'll have resources to get lung cancer screening at other institutions. We understand that the VA may not be where people wanna get their healthcare. Also, we encourage people to bring their loved ones. So do you have a brother or sister who isn't a veteran but wants to hear about lung cancer screening or your father who's not a veteran and wants to hear about lung cancer screening. The most important thing is that we get you connected with care, where that is is less important but we wanna make sure that you're aware of the benefits that you may be eligible through the VA. - Yeah, you say something better, see. - Yes, I was just the importance of focusing on African American veterans. While black veterans are at even higher risk for lung cancer, they undergo screening at a lower rate in white veterans. You know, see, studies show that black veterans are likely to benefit even more from lung cancer screening and receive excellent state-of-the-art care at the VA after they're diagnosed with lung cancer. We want to make sure that African American veterans know about the importance of your screenings, your yearly checkups, and the free. And let me say this again, free 99 care for veterans who have served this great country. And I just wanna, you know, you touched on the 54th Regiment, the 54th Regiment where I sit as a re-enactor also, they had a war correspondent, George Steffens. He was the first war correspondent during the Civil War and he wrote down the things that he saw at Fort Wagner and his writings really, they captivated me. And I thought as a young man coming up in Boston, I came at a busing, so my first objective was not to go to college because what I've seen going to school on the police escort. So I went into the military and that was one of the greatest decisions that I ever made. And I kind of stumbled my way through because there was really not too much guidance, but I knew these gentlemen was distinguished, honor, courage, and dignity. And that's what we came from, you know, as service members, they volunteered to fight in the Civil War. The 54th Regiment, and I stand from those shoulders from which I stand, and they even asked, let our folks know that we died standing up. Let our folks know that we fought against our pressure. Let our folks know that we fought for freedom. So the freedom that they fought for, I'm imploring all of my DD-214 alumni. Call this number, 617-275-6101. This is a lifeline that we're throwing and because of the historic injustices that have happened, we are now having those conversations that we need to have. - You know, being energized with the truth dispels all the other stuff, the excuses that you make. We have an opportunity. Folks, we have an opportunity to work with you and your family members, if they're veterans, or veterans that don't have a family. We, on the co-design team, want to help you. See, a lot of people don't know how to appreciate being helped. But when you're confronted with something that can take you away, and we find a way to not take you away, that's an awesome task being presented to you. And as a veteran that has served our country, we want to help you help yourself. You know, we want to be there for you. That's why we're here today to let you know that we are coming. We got doc, we got stick. We got a whole lot of people. Did you hear what he said about having these co-design teams throughout the military? - Absolutely. - I think another thing that I want to highlight, you've talked a lot about the anxiety that veterans feel going to the VA. Another thing that we know is that people feel a lot of anxiety when it comes to lung cancer screening. Some of that anxiety is from this idea that lung cancer, once it's diagnosed, can't be treated. But that's actually not the case. So the goal of lung cancer screening is to detect lung cancer at a very early stage when you can cure it with something like surgery. But even for later stage lung cancer, there's a lot of new treatments in the last five to 10 years that are helping people to live longer, better lives, even after being diagnosed with lung cancer. And the VA is providing this state-of-the-art lung cancer care to the veterans who are being diagnosed with lung cancer. And so we can treat lung cancer. That's a big statement that I want to get out there because I think a lot of people actually don't know that. We can treat lung cancer. - We can't treat lung cancer. - Thank you. - We can't treat lung cancer. - Yes, sir. - I should make that into a song, huh? (laughing) We can't treat lung cancer. You know, we're trying to get people to understand that help is available. - Absolutely. - Absolutely. - I wish you could be at one of those meetings, the CODIS Island meetings, and can hear the, we want to do something to help others that's uttered by the other members. And then some other members are silent. And then all of a sudden something good will come out to encourage us because it's a sad thing when nobody cares about you. And you're in a situation and been diagnosed with lung cancer. And nobody cares about you, but we do. - We do. - And that's why we're here today. We're here to say that. We're going to create outreach into the community. We're going to get some organizational support. We have a little, but we're going to build because we're going to go to the churches. - We're going to ask those churches to take a couple of minutes. - Absolutely. - And ask the veteran to raise their hands. - We want to tell you that Haywood Fennell and Steve and Doc were talking and I heard it on the radio. So I want to write it down. I want you to write it down. I want you to know that there's going to be some outreach in our church. - Absolutely. - Because they're coming to help us. - Yeah, we're coming to where the veterans are. That's where we want to go. - We're bringing it to you. - Thank you, Mr. Fennell. You talked about the heavy lifting we've been doing for these past six months. I have 38 years of government service. 23 of those years are in military. And I've done some heavy lifting and we had some conversations and I've been able to go into rooms that was way over my pay grade. But they needed me in those rooms because of my expertise in working with the, working with the ranks, within the ranks, talking to the ranks, knowing their fears. I always use Maya Angelos, quote, "We have to remember to laugh as much as we cry. "When I was deployed, those men gave, "was willing to give their lives to watch, "make sure I was safe. "And I was willing to give mine to make sure they were safe." That's a relationship that few have ever experienced. Once I came in with co-design, I've realized this program to reach black African American veterans, to teach them about lung cancer screening, get them connected. Veterans have been the most important part of developing this program. So they allowed me to, they gave me some of the scientific data, helped me intertweave my military culture, which is different in my race, into the co-design process. I am a veteran peer and that's the key to one of our successes for this mission. A peer as a specialist is a veteran trained to connect with other veterans. Support and empower veterans. Peers build trust, empathy, relationship to help, their fellow veterans. This is our approach is to have those conversations that we must have at the cookout. You must talk to your family and their descendants. If your father is a veteran, your uncle is a veteran, tell him, call this number, 617-275-6101. We're here to answer questions. We're here to be honest and upfront and frank about healthcare and equality. - That's right. - And we're not afraid of any conversation. We'll talk about the overt racism, covert racism. We'll talk about the systems that was in place to cause these harms, historic harms. We know the NAACP has been the spearhead in integrating American society, one of the oldest civil rights organization in the world. 115 years, but it took them, it took the president a special order to integrate that, to have fair housing, fair pay, fair healthcare. So we were like 75 years behind the race. And once the doors floodgates opened up, we started catching up, but we are still far behind. No excuses, but here are some of the reasons. And that's where co-design comes in. That's where our community partner cross cultural partnerships. You can't misunderstand what is being said because it's being said in different ways so that you can get it. (laughing) - Come on. The most important thing is that we care about you. - Absolutely. - So, you know, we're not here to blow no smoke. You know, we are here to blow the smoke away so that you can see and understand because for a long time, people will walk around and think, I thought nobody cared, but people was working even then. - That's right. - On information, it's a step project. You know, we're coming into the community now. We're gonna see you because we wanna help you. We need the information that you have around. If you become one of our clients, we refer you to where you need to go, you know? And we'll do what we need, you have what Doc said. You know, we can't help you. We can't do something for you. We can make you better. - Absolutely. And we are here to sustain mutuality also. We want all our veterans to realize from its roots, historical justice has been inter-tweaved in policy, practice and performance. Just think with me, Benjamin Rush, often referred to as the father of American psychiatry and a sign of the direct relation of independence. He said, "Nigros are suffering from an affliction called nigritude. This is a disorder that was thought to be a mild form of leprosy in which to only cure was to become white." Now come on, we have to work with that because he signed the Declaration of Independence, but the 54th Regiment was still there, laying their life down blood. Grant said, "The greatest fear of our Confederates is to arm the nigro." And when he told linking, we need these men to stand the line. And Lincoln employed 180,000, amassed 180,000 black troops. And you can just imagine, so the mindset from Benjamin Rush to now, all through weaving through history, we have to talk to ourselves and say, where are we in our recovery? Where are we in our wellness? Well, we're giving you the tools here. We built, we will build and hold in community, what are we getting the word out? Well, we are holding community events to learn more about lung cancer screening, VA care to connect with your peer support, connect with our scientists, with our doctors. We are giving you the resources because we know historical injustices have to be talked about. Let me tell you something. I remember Steve. I remember Doc, and this is where I was talking about what you referenced earlier about the mountain and the people. And I was working with a young lady over at the VA who's running the HIV/AIDS program, and I got an opportunity because I was doing some work with the Multicultural AIDS Coalition, and we talked about ethnic treatments, and Steve was talking about cross-cultural. Partnership? Partnership, yes, sir. It works. Absolutely. You know, we don't have to beat around the bush and try to second-guess each other. We've actually applied the strategy, and we are really looking forward to creating the mechanism that's going to create not just the outreach, but the treatment and its value because it's going to work its way through the system. We know that the government is concerned about the veterans now. Absolutely. So I'm just grateful for you to be here today to reinforce that because a lot of veterans need that. Come on, let's go to the VA. And it might not be lung cancer. It could be something else. Absolutely. Yeah, the VA is there to really deliver expert, high-quality care in whatever you need. Right. And so, you know, coming in here, telling the truth is what we need for our people to hear. You know, we're saying that we have a team of people that have been working together and talking about you guys that might be vulnerable to even put something down near a fan wall, which is right near the New England shelter for homeless veterans. You know, guys down in the comments that are homeless and stuff, they need care. And we're going to be there for them to give them the information because that's what we do. And so, I'm just so grateful to my listening audience. I just want you to say that number again. Yeah, definitely. That number, our outreach director for the Boston VA Healthcare is 617-275-6101. That's retired Colonel Dave Hanky, who was a driving force in one of our change agents in the co-design. And we are really excited, like you said, Mr. Fennell, about getting the message out. We know that many people and veterans can worry or be afraid about the CT scans, what it might find. That is what the VA and your healthcare team are here for. We will walk you through the anxiety and anything they might find on the CT scan. We also want to make sure that everyone knows that the purpose of lung cancer screening is to detect lung cancer. At an early and possible curable stage, also lung cancer treatment, even the more advanced cancers have come a long way in the past five years, with many state-of-the-art treatment options available. This is what we're bringing to our DD-214 alumni. We have signed a code of ethics that we will communicate one with the other with our cross-cultural partners. We will learn about individuals, learn about yourself, learn about any benefits that you have privileged to, because you do not look like us or walk like us, identify other races, how they handle stress, and what are told to them about stress. And so as we come in, we're coming sheep to the slop, sheep, you know, we're coming into that sheep. So it's very important that you identify, not a military culture, 'cause that's different than the race that's sitting before you. And we would like to help you understand military culture, why we posture, why we present the way we are, but on our healthcare and our equality care, that's a race issue that we've been dealing with ever since Benjamin Rush, who has been, you know, claiming these issues concerning African Americans. So we're here with a design team, with the doctors, with Mr. Fennell, everybody get on board, what's saving lives, and that's what it really boils down to. - And let me address another question. You know, because Doc, are there any symptoms that we might know about that would, you know, get us there a little quicker? - So one of the issues with lung cancer, which makes lung cancer screening so important, is that you don't develop symptoms of lung cancer until it's already started to spread, or as a later stage is what we call it. And so that's why lung cancer screening is so vital. It's meant to actually detect cancer in people who have no symptoms at all and are feeling perfectly well. So those are the people that should get lung cancer screening. If you're having symptoms, we very much encourage you to talk to your doctor, cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, whatever it may be, fatigue. Talk to your doctor about those symptoms, make sure that they understand those symptoms, make sure that they're listening to you about those symptoms. One of the things that I think Mr. Abrams does such a good job about talking about and will be working with our veterans that he pairs one-on-one with so closely is how to be an advocate for yourself, how to talk to your doctor, how to have these critical discussions, because your doctor's there to listen to you. But sometimes you just need a little bit of help of knowing how and what to say. And I think Mr. Abrams is just gonna be a fantastic person to help talk our veterans through that. And I'm just so grateful to be able to work with him and Mr. Fennell on this very important effort. - Doc, I wanna thank you. - Thank you. - For coming in. My good friend, Steve, you've been good. We enjoyed you. - My pleasure, sir. - Yeah, we wanna let people know that we're gonna be coming in the community. We're gonna build a strategy of help for people because they need help. You know, we working on attitudes, changes for the care providers, et cetera, the things that's catching on, but I just can't say enough about our team, co-designers, you know, we the ones, we doing it. And I wanna thank you again for coming in and being our guest folks for veterans that need help, 857-204-5312. That's for you to give me a call. Thank you so much. We'll see you again soon and God bless you. Bye-bye. - Thank you so much. - Thank you. (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music)