QUESTION
Council Member Menin Inquires Dr. Morse on Navigation for Abnormal Mammograms
0:53:21
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162 sec
Council Member Julie Menin asks Dr. Michelle Morse about post-screening procedures for women with abnormal mammograms found by the mobile mammography van. Dr. Morse details the role of navigators in ensuring these women understand their diagnosis and facilitating their quick access to follow-up care, including diagnostics and treatment. Menin further questions the continuity of communication with patients to ensure they receive necessary care.
Speaker 6
0:53:21
So I have a couple of questions related to cancer.
0:53:24
And I just wanna say at the outset, I think it is just so disconcerting and unconscionable nationwide that we're not seeing the cancer rates by and large falling.
0:53:34
And it makes me think, like, back in I mean, if you look at back in 1972, president Nixon declared a war on cancer and by and large that war is like, we are in an even worse situation in so many different areas.
0:53:47
And the new research that's come out for women under 50 is really, really alarming.
0:53:51
So I have two questions related to that.
0:53:53
1st, the mammography vans, which are so great and so important.
0:53:57
And I fully supported.
0:53:59
I'm doing one in my district.
0:54:01
My question is when a mass is for for a woman is being screened for a mammogram and you find a mass, what then happens and how is the city helping these women navigate the complex process of breast cancer?
Speaker 4
0:54:16
Yes.
0:54:16
Thank you for that question.
0:54:18
Council amendment, it's a major area of concern for us as well.
0:54:23
One of the things that we worry a lot about is the time from diagnosis of an abnormal mammogram to a final diagnosis of what the issue might be on that mammogram and then into actual treatment if it turns out that the abnormality on the mammogram is breast cancer or some other cancer.
0:54:43
This is one of the most important areas of intervention in cancer care in early treatment.
0:54:48
And so we agree with that concern.
0:54:51
The current work that we do with the mobile mammography band actually does have navigators as a part of the program.
0:54:58
And so what those navigators do is when someone who has their mammogram on the mobile van has an abnormal mammogram The navigator helps to reach out to them to make sure they understand the abnormality and helps them to as quickly as possible.
0:55:14
Get into a follow-up visit to figure out if they need further diagnostic test thing, whether that's a biopsy or an ultrasound or something else, and then helps them to get into treatment.
0:55:27
So that is part of the mobile mammography program.
0:55:31
I'm not I'm not saying that that happens for every mobile mammogram band, but for the one that we partner with at the health department.
Speaker 6
0:55:38
Just two other quick questions.
0:55:39
Do we follow the woman who has abnormal mass?
0:55:42
What is the communication that happens?
0:55:45
Are we following that woman?
0:55:46
Are we in constant contact with them to make sure they are accessing treatment.
0:55:50
And then I have one other quick question after.
Speaker 4
0:55:52
That is exactly the role of the navigator, but we can follow-up and share more data with you on how what that looks like, what the calls, the text messages, and what the specific follow-up communications are.