HOUSTON — The Rose broke the barrier of cost when it was founded in 1986. Now, with the help of like-minded funders, they are battling the second deterrent keeping almost 30% of eligible Texas women from life-saving mammograms – convenience.
The Rose added its first mobile unit nearly 10 years ago. Soon a second was on the road. Last year Harris County Healthcare Alliance made possible a third van and in October 2014 thanks to a gift from Woodforest Charitable Foundation, a fourth mobile mammography unit will join the fleet. As a result, nearly 12,000 women will be served through The Rose Mobile Mammography in the upcoming year.
“Mammography is an essential Community Health Service, a screening that every woman over the age of 40 should have every year. Studies clearly show the impact of mammography screening on reducing the number of women who die from breast cancer. Yet for the hard working poor in our communities, being able to have this important preventive screening is difficult, if not impossible. Even when women have insurance, taking time off from work becomes a barrier,” said Dorothy Gibbons, CEO and Co-Founder of The Rose.
Gibbons founded The Rose along with Dr. Dixie Melillo in 1986 because as colleagues in health care they were seeing too many women die from the disease. Cost, concern over time away from caring for others and/or work, and a lack of accessible screening options were the most frequent reasons for delaying preventive care.
“Thanks to incredible community support and our model whereby three insured women help cover the costs of one uninsured, we are able to make mammograms available to all. But ensuring that women could take time away from family demands, work, or could travel the distance to one of our facilities when they lived several counties away … that was a different dilemma. Mobile was our answer.”
The impact of The Rose Mobile Mammography grows with every year. Reasons offered for its success include:
- Mobile Mammography is more economical as employees cut what is typically a 2+hour travel/parking/appointment experience to less than 20 minutes.
- Set up within an office or small business only requires a 10’ x 10’ area and 3 grounded outlets.
- With the use of the confidential online tool, paperwork can be completed before the appointment so the entire experience lasts only 15 minutes from check-in to check-out.
- Unlike mammography programs with walk-on RVs, The Rose’s mobile van can be parked anywhere.
“We are saying as loud and as often as we can – Mobile Mammography saves time, money and lives,” Gibbons noted. “We know that rural areas see more loss of life due to breast cancer. And we know that taking services to women makes all the difference in the world. Bottom line … The Rose Mobile Mammography is a good investment for a healthy community.”
According to one study almost 30% of Texas women aged 40 or over report that they have not had a mammogram in the past two years. Another study shows that due to delays – often caused by the distance needed to travel to a facility offering mammograms — women in rural areas tend to be diagnosed in later stages of breast or cervical cancer. And yet, when last surveyed, more than half the counties in Texas had no mammography machines.
However, 2014 has set change in motion at The Rose. With new funding from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, The Rose can now expand services to the uninsured to 35 counties. The mobile fleet will take those services to both the uninsured and the insured.
“While we were thrilled to make 532 mobile visits to 160 locations in 2014, we want to significantly increase those numbers in 2015. We are asking every corporation and small business that we have contacts with to help us by calling our Mobile Team or contacting us by email and setting up a site visit,” explained Gibbons. “Access to care is at the heart of the mission of The Rose. We founded The Rose to break down the barrier to cost. With Mobile Mammography, we’re tackling the convenience barrier as well.”
The Rose welcomes businesses and corporations to join the growing number of clients who feature the Mobile Mammography Unit during Employee Wellness programs and host a Mobile Mammography day at their workplace. Email ontheroad@TheRose.org to learn more about The Rose Mobile Mammography. To set up a site visit, please call 281.464.5136 or e-mail mobileteam@therose.org.
The Rose provides access to quality breast health care to women in the Houston area and 35 counties — regardless of their ability to pay. Screenings and diagnostic care by breast health specialists and a trained and compassionate staff have been offered to nearly 500,000 women since 1986 when Co-Founders Dorothy Gibbons and Dr. Dixie Melillo first started the nonprofit. With two centers and a mobile fleet, The Rose overcomes barriers of cost and convenience helping to ensure that preventive care is accessible to all.
