May 17, 2002
Mammography van hits the streets this month
Dana-Farber may be rolling into a neighborhood near you since launching the Mammography Van this spring. A collaboration between the city of Boston and the Institute, the van is intended to reach underserved women who might not otherwise have access to regular mammography screening, says Vice President for Planning Anne Levine.
Equipped with a mammography machine and staffed by two radiology technicians, the van can bring this service to them. A team of radiologists at Faulkner-Sagoff Center will read the films.
The van service is just one of the myriad community outreach programs spearheaded or supported by Dana-Farber.
Project director Hope White, who was recruited to Dana-Farber from the Boston Public Health Commission, explains that the van will make regularly scheduled stops at Boston-area community health centers, among other places. According to White, this allows women to receive regular screening not only close to home, but also within a culturally familiar environment. This is especially important, she explains, for women who have just migrated to this country, and for women who do not speak English.
The goal, says Levine, is to make the van "very, very accessible," noting that it will also make stops at local health fairs, places of worship, and other locations.
