Overcoming Challenges in Implementing Screening

Teresa Deshields, PhD, is a faculty member at RUSH University. She previously led the psycho-oncology program at the Siteman Cancer Center at Washington University School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, MO. Deshields has long been involved in preparing psychologists for careers in psycho-oncology and health psychology.

Deshields is currently the immediate Past President of the American Psychosocial Oncology Society.

Deshields’ research interests center on quality of life for those diagnosed with cancer, as well as symptom burden and challenges related to symptom reporting.

Matthew Loscalzo, L.C.S.W., APOS Fellow is the Executive Director, People & Enterprise Transformation Emeritus Professor Supportive Care Medicine, Professor Population Sciences at the City of Hope.

Until August 2021, Matthew J. Loscalzo was the Liliane Elkins Professor in Supportive Care Programs in the Department of Supportive Care Medicine and Professor in Department of Population Sciences. He is also the founding Executive Director of the Department of Supportive Care Medicine and the Administrative Director of the Sheri & Les Biller Patient and Family Resource Center at the City of Hope-National Medical Center. Professor Loscalzo was the President of the American Psychosocial Oncology Society and the Association of Oncology Social Workers. Along with James Zabora, ScD, at the Johns Hopkins Oncology Center, they created the first prospective universal clinical biopsychosocial screening program in the United States.

Professor Loscalzo has held leadership positions at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins Oncology Center, Rebecca and John Moores Cancer Center at the UCSD and is now in his 14th year at City of Hope-National Medical Center. He has been a consultant to multiple major cancer organizations on how to build supportive care programs, implement new processes, enhance staff engagement and has developed a unique staff leadership model.

In 2010, he received the Outstanding Education and Training Award Recipient from the American Psychosocial Oncology Society; 2014, the  lifetime achievement award in clinical care with the Noemi Fisman Award for Lifetime Clinical Excellence from the International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS);  2015, the Jimmie Holland Life Time Leadership Award from the American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS); 2016 Harold Benjamin Innovation Award, Cancer Support Community; 2017 the recipient of the Arthur M. Sutherland Lifetime Achievement in the Field of Psycho-Oncology (IPOS); 2021 the American Psychosocial Oncology Society created the Matthew Loscalzo Outstanding Education and Training Award and City of Hope Created the Matthew Loscalzo Leadership Award Lecture Series. He has been the PI and faculty on multiple NCI funded training grants teaching health care professionals to build supportive care programs, comprehensive automated biopsychosocial screening programs, pain management and advanced cognitive behavioral skills. He is also on the editorial boards or a reviewer for several professional journals and has over 100 publications and 5 books. His clinical interests are gender-based medicine, strengths-based approaches to psychotherapies, pain management, problem-based distress screening and the creation of supportive care programs.

Ellen Dornelas, Ph.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist with more than 25 years of experience in helping people learn to cope effectively with emotions and live their best lives. Dr. Dornelas treats adult clients coping with depression, grief, loss, and work-related stress. Dr. Dornelas has advanced training in clinical health psychology, the application of the science of psychology to problems of health and illness.  In particular, Dr. Dornelas is experienced at helping individuals and couples coping with cancer, heart disease, postpartum depression. and anxiety, as well as grief and loss in pregnancy.  Dr. Dornelas has written books, book chapters, and journal articles for professionals on the practice of clinical health psychology.

Dr. Dornelas is licensed in Connecticut but can provide services via telehealth in many different states because she has obtained the Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology (APIT) from the PSYPACT Commission.