Linda Fleisher, PhD, MPH

Assistant Vice President, Office of Health Communication and Health Disparities,
Assistant Professor, Cancer Prevention and Control

Dr. Fleisher has a broad range of experience and knowledge in cancer control programs and patient education.  Her research has bridged the fields of health communications and public health, with an emphasis on public health planning and evaluation, consumer informatics, health disparities, health education/communication interventions, and community-participatory and dissemination research.  She has developed numerous health education materials and resources, co-authored a number of health communication tools (print and new media) and has directed efforts focusing on tailoring health communications materials to underserved audiences.  She has led a Patient Navigation Demonstration project focused on underserved populations, led regional workshops on patient navigation, developed a patient navigation resource guide, is a co-founder of Pennsylvania Patient Navigator Network and serves on the Steering Committee for the Academy of Oncology Nurse Navigators.  She also has extensive experience in the use of formative evaluation and community participation in developing cancer-related programs.  She has served on numerous steering committees and in advisory positions focusing on multicultural issues, such as the National Advisory for the Intercultural Cancer Council, the Appalachian Cancer Network, the Asian Health Advisory Board and the Pennsylvania Cancer Control Consortium.

Her areas of expertise include:

• Cancer Control program development and evaluation
• Community engagement and community assessment
• Educational and psychosocial interventions, both traditional and e-health
• Adaptation and implementation of evidence-based programs, especially for underserved populations
• Patient and Community Navigation.
• Health literacy; organizational assessment and development of interventions for those with limited health literacy

Education:

Doctor of Philosophy, Health Studies/Health Communications, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
MPH, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
BA, Sociology, West Chester University, West Chester, PA

Professional Affiliations:

American Medical Informatics Association

American Public Health Association

American Society of Preventive Oncology

Pennsylvania Public Health Association

Society of Behavioral Medicine

Society for Public Health Education

Awards:

Outstanding Community Service Award, Southeastern Pennsylvania High Blood Pressure Program (SEPAHBP)

Marion Morra Award, NCI's Cancer Information Service

ATECAR Steering Committee Award, Center for Asian Health, Temple University

Clinical Interests/Research:

Areas of special interest include clinical trials management including cooperative group and industry sponsored studies; clinical trial implementation across multi-hospital health systems; regulatory; education and training for clinical research staff

Selected Publications:

• Gibbons, M Chris, Fleisher, L., Slamon, R.W., Bass, S., Kandadai, V., Beck, J.R. Exploring the Potential of Web 2.0 to Address Health Disparities. Journal of Health Communication, 16:1-13, 2011.
• Fleisher, L., Kandadai, V., Keenan, E., Miller, S.M., Devarajan, K., Ruth, K.J., Rodoletz, M., Bieber, E.J., Weinberg, D.S. Build It, and Will They Come? Unexpected Findings from a Study on a Web-Based Intervention to Improve Colorectal Cancer Screening. Journal of Health Communication (0):1-13, 2011.
• Wen, KY., Miller-Halegoua, S.M., Stanton, A., Fleisher, L., Morra, M.M., Jorge, A., Diefenbach, M.A., Ropka, M.E., Marcus, A.C., The Development and Preliminary Testing of a Multimedia Patient-Provider Survivorship Communication Module for Breast Cancer Survivors. Patient Education and Counseling, (in press).
• Wang C, Gallo RE, Fleisher L, Miller SM. Literacy Assessment of Family Health History Tools for Public Health Prevention. Public Health Genomics. 2010/01/22 ed.
• Fleisher, L., Kornfeld, J., Davis, S., Morra, M.E., Squiers, L. The NCI's Cancer Information Service's Research Continuum Framework: Integrating Research into Cancer Education Practice (1999-2004). Journal of Cancer Education, 22 (Suppl. 1): S41-8, 2007.
• Fleisher, L., Buzaglo, J., Collins, M., Millard, J., Miller, S.M., Egleston, B., Solarino, N., Trinastic, J., Cegala, D.J., Benson, A.B., Schulman, K.A., Weinfurt, K.P., Sulmasy, D., Diefenbach, M.A., Meropol, N.J. Using Health Communication Best Practices to Develop a Web-Based Provider-Patient Communication Aid: The CONNECT Study. Patient Education and Counseling 71:378-387, 2008.
• Fleisher, L. Helping Your Patients Quit Smoking: Using the NCI's Cancer Information Service as a Resource. Primary Care and Cancer, 20:48-51, 2000.
• Ma, G.X., Fleisher, L. Awareness of Cancer Information among Asian Americans. Journal of Community Health, 28(2):115-130, 2003.
• Bright, M.A., Fleisher, L., Thomsen, C., Morra, M.E., Marcus, A., Dortch, W. Exploring e-Health Usage and Interest Among Cancer Information Service Users: The Need for Personalized Interactions and Multiple Channels Remains. Journal of Health Communication, 10:35-52, 2005.

Technical Guides:

• Soltoff, C., Fleisher, L., Miller, S.M. Improving health literacy in medical decision making through the redesign of the informed consent process: A tool kit approach. Invited report for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2009.
• Bass, S.B., Gallo, R, Crookes, D.M., Berger, T., Fleisher, L. Your Resource Guide to Health Literacy. Pennsylvania Department of Health, 2008.
• Crookes, D.M., Morra, M.E., Berger, T., Gallo, R., Fleisher, L. Your Resource Guide to Patient Navigation. Pennsylvania Department of Health, 2008

E-mail:

Linda.Fleisher@fccc.edu

Phone:

215-728-3690