See, Test & Treat: Hawaii, New York, Mississippi
Honolulu, Hawaii, June 29
See, Test & Treat’s first program outside of the continental United States took place at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children in Hawai’i. The event was led by Jeffrey L. Killeen, MD, FCAP, a pathologist at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children and medical director of oncology services for Hawai‘i Pacific Health.
“See, Test & Treat broadened the impact of the pathology laboratory,” Dr. Killeen said. “Our Kapi‘olani Women’s Center team, partnering with our physicians, radiologist, and pathology, led the effort and were central in the planning process.”
See, Test & Treat helped both the Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children and the pathology laboratory meet their goals for expanded awareness. “We are bringing pathology as a specialty to the forefront,” Dr. Killeen said. “This program clearly raised the level of pathology visibility.”
Community housing coordinators helped to recruit several busloads of patients. This effort helped contribute to the 47 women screened at the event.
With its pelvic and clinical breast exams, Pap tests, and screening mammograms all standard and at no cost to patients, See, Test & Treat was ideally suited to meet the needs of Kapi’olani’s underserved populations.
“Here in Hawaii, certain populations have a much higher incidence of breast and cervical cancers, including Native Hawaiians, Filipinos, Micronesians, and other Pacific Islander populations,” Dr. Killeen said.
Of the 41 Pap tests and 28 screening mammograms conducted at the event, 14.2% and 14.6% were abnormal, respectively. Women with abnormal results were connected to follow-up care as a result of attending the Kapi‘olani See, Test & Treat.
White Plains, New York, April 27
At White Plains Hospital, in White Plains, New York, a first-time See, Test & Treat program achieved instant visibility by becoming part of the Neighborhood Health Fair. This 40-year-old fair brings together numerous community groups that serve Latinos, French-speaking Baptists, Haitians, and others.
Roberta Graham, a now retired nurse, helped co-found the fair to get low-income individuals in the community the health education they needed. Over the years, she contributed to its growth and observed its impact.
“So many people either wrote to me, called me, or, when they saw me in the street, told me how their life had been saved because of the health fair,” she said.
The addition of See, Test & Treat this year gave participants the chance to receive additional screening tests that they may not have access to elsewhere. The arrangement also enhanced See, Test & Treat’s standard educational component by having more clinicians on hand to answer questions and explain diagnoses.
The lead pathologist, Baljit Singh, MD, FCAP, chief of pathology at White Plains, was at the forefront of the program, greeting patients in person as well as providing Pap results. “The event was a huge success and we helped many, many patients,” he said.
Jackson, Mississippi, June 1
In telling their stories, two See, Test & Treat participants demonstrate the vital role of the CAP Foundation’s flagship program and the pathologists who make it happen. The program took place at the University of Mississippi Medical Center’s Cancer Center and Research Institute in Jackson, Mississippi.
Stephanie W., one of 103 women screened, said she is in limbo. The small practice where she works as a veterinary technician isn’t required to provide insurance coverage. She makes too much money to qualify for aid but not enough to afford health insurance. “It would be a great chunk of my income,” Stephanie said.
Like Stephanie, Petrona J. has been steadily employed. Her previous employer provided affordable insurance, but the company went out of business. She said the insurance plan available at her current employer is too expensive.
Following an abnormal Pap test result in 2004, Petrona had cervical cancer screening almost every year. But for the past three years, no insurance meant no Pap test. Then a promo for See, Test & Treat on Facebook caught her attention. “I knew this was my opportunity to go get checked,” Petrona said.
Stephanie had gone without a mammogram or cervical cancer screening for more than 10 years. She heard about See, Test & Treat on a Jackson radio station.
“See, Test & Treat was a godsend for me.”
On average, $100 covers the screening and education for one woman at a See, Test & Treat event. Please consider a donation to the program. Your modest gift could help save a woman’s life.
