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St. David's Women's Center of Texas, at St. David's North Austin Medical Center, Provides Free Mammograms to Uninsured and Underinsured Patients
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
St. David’s Women’s Center of Texas, located at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center, is currently providing mammograms to uninsured and underinsured patients through a national grant awarded to the Breast Cancer Resource Center of Texas (BCRC), which has an office located at this St. David’s North Austin Medical Center and at additional locations in Travis, Williamson and Hays counties.
Because of this generous grant from the National Breast Cancer Foundation, women 40 to 65 years of age, with qualifying incomes, will have access to these benefits.
St. David’s Women’s Center of Texas will work with the BCRC to provide these services to women who are least likely to be screened—low income, underinsured or completely uninsured women.
“This grant allows us to help women in North Austin who are in tough financial situations maintain a healthy, cancer-free life,” Ken Mitchell, M.D., chief medical officer at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center, said. “By providing mammograms to these patients, we greatly improve the chances that breast cancer will be detected early and successfully treated.”
Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed among women in Texas. This year there will be approximately 200,000 new cases of breast cancer in the U.S., according to the National Cancer Institute. BCRC offers women’s services to more than 5,000 women in Central Texas, including Travis, Williamson, Bastrop, Hays, Lee and other rural counties.
This is the third year the National Breast Cancer Foundation has awarded BCRC a $35,000 grant that allows the organization to work with area hospitals to continue providing free women’s services.
“We are thrilled to partner with area medical facilities, such as St. David’s Women’s Center of Texas, to provide these services for women who otherwise may not be able to afford them,” Dianna Petrick, the director of North Austin Services for the BCRC, said. “We’re thankful for the continued support from the National Breast Cancer Foundation and Austin’s health care community.”
For more information on these services, and to see if you qualify, please call 512-901-6644.
St. David’s North Austin Medical Center
St. David’s North Austin Medical Center, located at 12221 North Mopac Expressway, is owned by St. David’s HealthCare, one of the largest health systems in Texas. The 332-bed multi-specialty, acute care facility is dedicated to the highest level of women’s health services, including maternity and newborn care with Level I, II and III nurseries at the adjacent St. David’s Women’s Center of Texas, as well as a 24-hour emergency department, heart and vascular center, neurology and neurosurgery, a kidney transplant program, inpatient and outpatient surgery, and acute inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, among many others. For more information, please visit StDavids.com.
About the Breast Cancer Resource Centers (BCRC) of Texas
As breast cancer survivors, the BCRC helps women of any age, culture, education, profession and financial status navigate from diagnosis through recovery, and all services are free of charge.
Founded in 1995, the BCRC now serves close to 5,000 clients each year from six locations and offers a helpline to provide immediate support; weekly orientations to clarify diagnosis and treatment options and provide information about available resources, a lending library including a special Children’s Resource Collection to assist parents in explaining breast cancer to their children, peer-to-peer supports, a number of support groups and physical recovery information. The BCRC program for the medically underserved provides a multicultural, bilingual, multiracial team of staff and volunteers that work with the women being treated in the breast clinic of the Shivers Cancer Center at Brackenridge Hospital. The team assists patients by providing emotional support and by aiding with the practical matters of filling out forms and formulating questions for the physicians. The BCRC also has offices at St. David’s Professional Building in Round Rock, The Women’s Center at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center, St. David’s Georgetown Cancer Treatment Center and their newest location at the Central Texas Medical Center in San Marcos. Learn more about the Breast Cancer Resource Centers of Texas services and events at http://www.bcrc.org.
