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Spring, 2005
 Content: • Delivering care and public education
PITTSFIELD The Women's Imaging Center at Berkshire Medical Center is in the business of serving mainly women. And its biggest challenge, staffers say, is the reluctance of some women to undergo regular mammograms to screen for breast cancer. The center, located on the first floor of Berkshire Medical Center, performs between 80 and 85 mammograms daily to screen for breast cancer. But that is not enough, said Dr. Lisa Loring, the center's medical director. She cited a Massachusetts Department of Public Health estimate that as many as 50 percent of women in Berkshire County who are eligible for a mammogram are not undergoing the procedure. "Our [patient] numbers have gone up a bit. We have gotten to some people with outreach programs, but not as much as we would like," Loring said. "We would like to be doing much better than that." Women complain that mammograms hurt too much, but the Women's Imaging Center now offers a "mammopad" to make the examination more comfortable. Some women also believe that if they have no family history of breast cancer, they do not need to get a mammogram. Loring refuted that assumption, saying, "Seventy-five percent of women with breast cancer have no risk factors." Still, other women say they don't feel a lump, so they do not schedule a mammogram. "That's the point," Loring said. "We want to catch it before they feel something." Focus group Work on the Women's Imaging Center began in 2001 with the input of a focus group made up of medical professionals as well as former breast cancer patients. The primary goal that emerged was to create an imaging center where patients could get mammograms and any necessary follow-up care in one private and comfortable setting. The center was opened in August 2003, consolidating two mammography practices once divided between the Medical Arts Complex and the hospital. The center also performs bone density screening for osteoporosis, ultrasounds and biopsies. Patients can schedule their own annual mammograms and do not need a referral from a primary care physician, Loring said. They often get preliminary results from a mammogram in one or two days and may see a surgeon the same week they are screened.
"This is a place to come to when [patients] have a problem, and we will see them through that problem," Loring said. "We don't just say, 'OK, there’s a problem. Good luck.’ Even if the outcome is not what they were looking for, we’re going to be there for them. Whatever they need, we will help them. Even if we don’t know the answer to something, we’ll figure it out with them." A case conference takes place weekly during which specialists meet to review cases handled by the Women's Imaging Center and to discuss which services will best help particular patients. Once a year, an advisory group made up of social workers, surgeons, patients and technicians meets to review the procedures and set-up of the center. "Women felt like they had to figure out the health care system on their own," said Ruth Blodgett, senior vice president of system planning and programming at Berkshire Health Systems and a member of the original focus group. "... We want to make the process more transparent." Berkshire Health Systems is the parent company of Berkshire Medical Center. Patient care coordinator Kathy Hart, a two-time breast cancer survivor, experienced the earlier way of doing things. "There wasn't the coordination of care. It was up to the patient to figure it out," she said of her battles with cancer in 1996 and 2000. "It was difficult, even with my background in health care." Hart works with roughly 100 patients at any given time, helping to guide them through the process from diagnosis to treatment, and beyond. For example, she helps patients find resources such as the "Look Good, Feel Better" program run by the American Cancer Society, which helps women with such matters as skin care, wigs and scarves. Hart also refers patients to one of several support groups, if necessary. "I can really relate to their concerns," she said. Educating the greater community on the importance of regular mammograms -- yearly after the age of 40, self-exams monthly and clinical breast examinations annually -- is an ongoing process. Toward that end, the center contains a patient education room, available to all patients and the general public, that offers books, brochures, videos and computer information about breast cancer and treatment. Hart and other staffers have been vocal in the community on women's health issues, through advertisements and participation in events such as "Paint the Town Pink," "Go Red for Women," and the American Cancer Society Relay for Life. "It is really important that women understand the importance of mammography, as well as self and clinical exams," Hart said. "The word really needs to be out there that [women] need to take care of themselves. We want women diagnosed at the earliest possible stage so the outcome can be a lot better." By continuing to offer comprehensive care and support, the staff of the center hopes to increase the number of patients it sees, particularly for routine screening services. "Our focus," Blodgett said, "is giving patients access to information, good quality care, continuity of care, education and support. The better we do that, the more people will come to us."  RETURN TO TOP |
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