OCNA Conference Presentations Now Available

• By tex2step
• Posted August 13, 2009 at 10:39 am
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Am I the only one who thinks that it is a bit odd to have to pay to read the information from this conference? I thought that the point was to get the word out to people on this disease.

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• By OCNA_Events
• Posted August 13, 2009 at 4:06 pm
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I appreciate your suggestion and we did discuss if we were going to charge or not, at great length. Since our Conference has such value and attendees have to pay to attend we decided we should charge something small to view the presentations. All attendees are able to view the presentations for free. If you want to talk about it more feel free to email me at lwhite@ovariancancer.org

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• By Cancergrrl
• Posted August 18, 2009 at 1:11 am
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I agree with tex2step. FWIW, the only type of information I'd be willing to pay for would be positive data about a breakthrough therapy that will help me live longer.

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• By Jen457
• Posted August 18, 2009 at 10:33 am
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I had BC in '94 and posted to a BC bulletin board. One of the posters went every year to a sympoisum and made several posts on what she learned. Would it be possible for you to do the same?

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• By moie_59
• Posted August 18, 2009 at 10:45 am
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For purchase? Alot of us would have loved to have gone but didn't for different reasons. I can see covering the cost of the presentations and video's. Their are people who couldn't afford to go,or couldn't go because of treatment. How about donations to cover costs and all profits go to Ovarian Cancer research?

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• By tex2step
• Posted August 18, 2009 at 11:16 am
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Thanks Ladies for responding.....I was beginning to think that I was alone in this thinking.
As a stage IIC PPC survivor of one year, I am still in the learning curve and preparing for the next battle.

I would have loved to have gone and learned in person, but as you all have said - there are a number of reasons that this was not possible.

I am so sorry that they has decided not to share, but it won't keep us from our mission of learning and fighting. Thanks again! Stacey

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• By OCNA_Events
• Posted August 18, 2009 at 11:26 am
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All,

I thank you for your comments and have noted them all so we can discuss next year in our planning of the Conference. We are not charging to cover our costs of taping the Conference, because we won't. We are charging because our Conference and the information presented at it has great worth. People must pay to attend the Conference, and therefore we are charging less that half the price of early registration for all of the presentations. We offer many scholarships for those we cannot afford to attend the Conference. I value your opinions and please feel free to email me if you want to discuss further. Lwhite@ovariancancer.org

Thanks,
Liz White
Director of Events

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• By LilySue
• Posted August 19, 2009 at 10:51 am
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I did attend the conference and there was a lot of information presented that would be extremely useful as well as inspirational for all survivors. Perhaps you might look into your local support group purchasing access to the presentations and then holding a meeting to view the videos or at least share copies of the Power Point presentations. Another option would be to get 5 women to share the cost and then each of you would be able to view the presentations one time at your leisure. I really think the presentations are worth the money but sharing the costs might make it easier.

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• By Annette1
• Posted August 27, 2009 at 11:15 am
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As a member of this year's Conference Committee, I want to weigh in on the discussion about the presentations being offered for sale. For several years, the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance has debated whether or not to film the presentations but found it cost prohibitive to do it professionally. We felt that a poor quality would not be useful to our community, so we were never able to do this in the past. Finally this year, the committee decided to take the risk that other organizations would be interested in purchasing the materials for their own use because of the high caliber of presenters, and invested in professional sound and film resources in hopes of recovering the cost.

As a benefit to those who attended the conference and our Partner Members whose dues support the organization, we offered the presentations for free as a way to facilitate their role as emissaries of the conference, cascading the information to others.

We understand that not everyone could attend the conference. One member of my team was taken ill at the last moment and had to cancel. For those who could not be there, it is our utmost desire to bring current, relevant information in any way possible. It is not our intention to profit from these activities but we also struggle each year cover our costs. At the same time, we also realize that those of us with ovarian cancer have extraordinary financial obligations. Therefore, we are hoping that we can support our survivors in the following way.

The Ovarian Cancer National Alliance is offering a special price on the presentations to any survivor who wants to share their story with us. These stories may be used in a number of ways, particularly in helping others understand how ovarian cancer affects women and their loved ones. We strive to be the collective voice of the ovarian cancer community and your stories will strengthen that voice. For those interested in writing a short essay, the presentations will be available for half price.

To access the form and submit your story, all you have to do is click on this link. The discount codes are then activated for you.

I hope you find this helpful and strongly encourage you to stay connected to us. We are here for you and are working everyday to make the journey better.

Annette Leal Mattern
Survivor
OCNA Board of Directors

www.ovariancancer.org/_images/uploads/2009%20OCNA%20Story%20Discount%20Form .doc

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