The University of Toledo’s Center for Health and Successful Living has been honored with the Debra A. Green Community Service Award for its work providing advocacy and support services for breast cancer survivors and those battling the disease.
The award was presented Oct. 14 at Medical Mutual of Ohio’s 25th annual Hattitude cancer awareness brunch.
Dr. Amy Thompson, left, and Dr. Timothy Jordan, co-directors of the UT Center for Health and Successful Living, accepted the Debra A. Green Community Service Award on behalf of the center from Christina Williams of 13 ABC News, left, and Christine Taylor, community affairs manager for Medical Mutual. The award was presented at Medical Mutual of Ohio’s 25th annual Hattitude cancer awareness brunch.
Dr. Amy Thompson and Dr. Timothy Jordan, co-directors of the Center for Health and Successful Living, accepted the award. Thompson and Jordan are both professors in the UT College of Health and Human Services.
“This is a hugely important award for us,” Thompson, interim associate vice provost of faculty affairs, said. “Our nomination came from breast cancer survivors. It’s wonderful to have the people we serve want to recognize the services and resources our center provides that have helped them.”
The Center for Health and Successful Living was established in 2013 to create a community resource hub for individuals living with breast cancer and other chronic diseases. The center puts a particular focus on helping those who are vulnerable, marginalized, at-risk and under-served.
Among the services the center offers breast cancer survivors are nutrition and health and wellness counseling; smoking cessation; physical and occupational therapy; and customized exercise programs.
The center works in partnership with The University of Toledo’s Eleanor N. Dana Cancer Center and several academic programs to blend educational experiences for students, research opportunities for faculty members, volunteer opportunities for survivors, and service opportunities for members of the community to provide customized services for breast cancer survivors.
“Our center is unique in that it is interdisciplinary and student-run. We have students from exercise science, recreational therapy, public health, social work counseling and other areas of study working together to provide comprehensive services to breast cancer survivors,” Thompson said. “We’re honored Medical Mutual has recognized the center for its all-around approach to serving the community.”
Since its inception, the Center for Health and Successful Living has educated nearly 5,000 community members and arranged mammograms and clinical breast exams for 800 women.
The Debra A. Green Community Service Award is named for retired Medical Mutual Vice President Debra Green, who became an advocate and breast cancer awareness champion after her diagnosis more than 20 years ago.
