Since 2013, Northwest Indiana (NWI) Breast Care Center at Methodist Hospitals has been the proud recipient of annual grants from Bears Care, the charitable arm of The Chicago Bears. With the support of the Bears Care grant, the NWI Breast Care Center aims to assist low-income, high-risk, and minority patients by offering free mammograms to identify breast cancer during its earliest stages.
Over the years, the Bears Care grant has led to 25 cancer diagnoses. In the first cycle of the Bears Care grant program, NWI Breast Care Center served 57 women, and that number has now grown to the hundreds in recent years. Since 2013, 1,041 women have been screened through the $20,000 supplied annually by Bears Care. That means more than $250,000 has been committed and used to improve breast health among underserved women of NWI.
Even though the number of mammograms being performed has increased, NWI Breast Care Center Manager Jennifer Sanders would like to see those numbers grow exponentially in order to help as many women as possible. With high breast cancer mortality and late diagnosis rates in Lake County, especially among minorities, increasing the number of mammograms is a priority for NWI Breast Care Centers.
“Right now, the biggest thing is that we want women to know that this program is here and that it is being underutilized. Only 52% of women are being screened in Lake County, and only 57% of women are being screened in Porter County,” Sanders said. “We want women to know that there are dollars available for them if they can’t afford a screening or diagnostic mammogram. At the NWI Breast Care Center we offer breast biopsies as well as breast MRI's. We want women to come forward and be part of the solution and not part of the statistics. I want women to step up and take charge of their breast health. No woman walks alone when you come to our facility. You are not our mother, grandmother, or sisters, but you are someone else's and we recognize that and want to help you on your journey."
If the NWI Breast Care Center does find something during a screening, it will cover the cost of extra mammograms, ultrasounds, and/or biopsies along with breast MRI's and pathology reading fees.
Sanders understands that the money for a mammogram is not the only barrier women face. Another challenge for many is the lack of access to transportation, as discovered through a community health needs assessment. This is why Methodist Hospitals offers free transportation for a woman diagnosed with breast cancer to come receive her treatments at the SLC in Merrillville.
With all the amenities NWI Breast Care Center provides, the main, missing piece that women in the Region can contribute is simple: their time.
“Give us half an hour to an hour of your day just to make sure you’re healthy. If you won’t do it for yourself, do it for your family,” Sanders said. “As women, we put our own health on the back burner because we’re generally the caretakers. There may be more pressing things in your life, but you have to realize that if you’re not there for the people who are relying on you, what happens to them? We want to help you maintain your health so you can do what you need to live your life."
If you are thinking this does not pertain to you because you have insurance, consider whether you have loved ones who are uninsured or underinsured. If so, the NWI Breast Care Center’s program is their solution. By making them aware of this grant, you may find yourselves saving the lives of others.
“If you have insurance but are not getting screened, ask yourself ‘why?’ Are you afraid of the discomfort, radiation, showing your breasts, or anxiety? We have solutions for all of that,” Sanders said. “We work individually with each patient regarding the compression they receive - not everyone gets the same compression. Radiation worries should be minimal. You are exposed to more radiation flying in a plane from one coast to the other.”
“If you are embarrassed due to your breast size or weight, ladies, don't be - we are respectful health care professionals. We care about you, not the size of you or your breasts. If you’re anxious, we have you covered. We offer same day reads to all breast cancer survivors so they never wait for their results. We advise women who experience a great deal of anxiety waiting for their letter in the mail to please ask their technologist for a same day reading of their mammogram. We offer this Monday-Friday when our Breast Fellowship-Trained Radiologist Dr. Anastasia Siatras is on site to perform the reading,” Sanders said. "I promise we have solutions for the concerns you have, so don’t delay, come get your mammogram today. We also do walk-in mammograms at all of our sites. We do everything we can to support you and your efforts to get a mammogram done. We take patients three hours late or three hours early - no woman is left behind.”
To qualify for the Bears Care Grant program, women’s households must be 275% below the poverty level. To put this in terms of salary, this means that a family of four that makes $99,000 qualifies for the program, and a woman who makes $50,000 qualifies for the program.
Income level aside, no other demographics factor into qualifying for the Bears Care Grant program.
“To use our program, you do not have to be from the state of Indiana, you don't have to be a certain age, and you don’t have to be a certain race. If you fit our financial criteria, we assist you,” Sanders said.
For more information about Northwest Indiana Breast Care Center at Methodist Hospitals and the Bears Care Grant, click here.