Welcome

The Northern Kentucky Women's Cancer Coalition,unites survivors, health professionals, community leaders and organizations
interested in reducing breast and cervical cancers among Northern Kentucky women. Our specific aim is to assist low-income individuals, 40-65 years of age, who lack access to preventative health care services.

About Us

About the Northern Kentucky Women’s Cancer Coalition

Who are we?

Membership consists of interested organizations, associations, agencies, and individuals that support the purpose of the coalition.

What is the purpose of the coalition?

The coalition promotes year round, community wide programs and activities that support women’s cancer detection, awareness and education in collaboration with other organizations.

How are we funded?

Donations from corporations, health organizations and individuals raised through fundraising events and a grant from the Northern Kentucky Health Department.

Who is our target population?

Our specific aim is to assist low-income women, ages 40-65, who lack access to preventative health care services because they are uninsured or underserved.

What locations do we serve?

Our activities take place in Boone, Campbell, Kenton, and Grant counties in Northern Kentucky.

What kind of activities have we done in the past?

Previous community awareness and outreach projects include: Bingo Project; Beauty Shop Project; School Mammography Project; Senior Citizens Project; Low-Income Project; and Bra Tag Project.

What are the current activities of the coalition?

We promote awareness of the Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program of the Kentucky Department for Public Health through outreach to physicians, local hospitals, health care and community organizations. Women who are screened through the program and are found to need treatment for breast or cervical cancer may be eligible for treatment through the program administered by local health departments and the Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services. Also our “Prevention Pays’ project aimed at our target population provides an incentive gift card to women who get a mammogram through the project.

Goals

To increase the number of women who utilize screenings for early detection of breast and cervical cancers in accordance with the American Cancer Society’s age guidelines
To increase the number ofuninsured and underinsured women who utilize screenings for the early detection of breast and cervical cancers in accordance with the American Cancer Society’s age guidelines
To provide and promote educational opportunities for the public in the area of women’s cancer
To support the legislative and other activities of the Kentucky Breast Cancer Coalition

Membership

President: Donna Mullen, RN, BSN, Clinical Coordinator, Northern Kentucky Health Department

Vice President: Toni Carle,">, RN, Coordinator Women's Wellnees, St. Elizabeth Medical Center

Treasurer: Katherine Rack, BS, Cancer Control Specialist,
Kentucky Cancer Program

Secretary:

Linda Herms, RN, Certified Nurse Navigator,
St Luke Centers for Breast Health

Leslie Backus, Community Partner

Terri Bogan, RN, Nurse Navigator, St. Elizabeth Medical Center Women’s Wellness Center

Kelly Bond, Northern Kentucky Area Development District

Lindsay V. Peterson Clanton, BA, Health Initiatives Representative,
American Cancer Society

Phyllis B. Reed, ARNP, Research Nurse/Nurse Navigator, St. Elizabeth Medical Center Women’s Wellness Center

Cathy A. Reising, CTR, Manager - St. Elizabeth Medical Center Cancer Registry,

St. Elizabeth Medical Center Cancer Care Center

Madonna Vinicomb RN, Mobile Mammography Coordinator,

St. Elizabeth Medical Center Women’s Wellness Center

Linda Vogelpohl, RN, BA, NHA, Clinical Manager Medical Oncology St. Luke Hospitals,

The St. Luke Hospitals

Dana Moran, MSW, Director of Social Work and Pastoral Care,
The St. Luke Hospitals

Clydette Huddleston, RN, Certified Fitter for Post Mastectomy Products and Compression Stockings Manager, Complements Medical Accessory Center, St. Luke Hospital East

Nyota Omoiele, MS, MPH, CHES, Director, Mammography Project,

Cancer Family Care

Janet Chambers,
I Have Wings

Volunteer

If you are interested in becoming a part of the Northern Kentucky Women’s Cancer Coalition, please contact Donna Mullen at 859.431.3345, Ext. 2609 or Donna.Mullen@ky.gov.

Programs and Activities

Prevention Pays

Northern Kentucky Health Department Prevention Pays

The Northern Kentucky Health Department, in partnership with the Northern Kentucky Women’s Cancer Coalition, is making it easier for eligible women to receive important screenings for breast cancer and cervical cancer.

On designated “Prevention Pays,” cancer screening days, held on a rotating schedule at the Health Department’s county health centers in Boone, Campbell, Grant and Kenton counties, eligible women are able to have an annual exam including a pap smear, pelvic exam and clinical breast exam performed by a nurse practitioner. Then, they can have a mammogram in the mobile mammography unit from either St. Elizabeth Medical Center or The St. Luke Hospitals and The Jewish Hospital, which will be parked outside the health center.

To be eligible for the screening, women must be between the ages of 40 and 64, have an income below 250 percent of the federal poverty guidelines (currently $24,500 for a single-person household and $50,000 for a four-person household), and not be enrolled in a private health insurance plan, Medicare or Medicaid.
Appointments are required for the screenings, and women are asked to schedule their appointments in advance.

Upcoming dates and locations:

January 16, 2007, at the Kenton County Health Center, 2002 Madison Ave., Covington, Ky. For more information or appointments, please call 859.431.3345.

February 23, 2007, at the Boone County Health Center, 7505 Burlington Pike, Florence, Ky. For more information or appointments, please call 859.363.2060.

May 4, 2007, at the Campbell County Health Center, 12 E. Fifth St., Newport, Ky. For more information or appointments, please call 859.431.1704.

July 27, 2007, at the Kenton County Health Center, 2002 Madison Ave., Covington, Ky. For more information or appointments, please call 859.431.3345.

August 10, 2007, at the Boone County Health Center, 7505 Burlington Pike, Florence, Ky. For more information or appointments, please call 859.363.2060.

August 31, 2007, at the Grant County Health Center, 234 Barnes Road, Williamstown, Ky. For more information or appointments, please call 859.824.5074.

November 2, 2007, at the Campbell County Health Center, 12 E. Fifth St., Newport, Ky. For more information or appointments,please call 859.431.1704.

Besides the designated screening days, the Health Department offers to offer daily appointments for annual women’s health exams at each of its county health centers. An average of 700 Northern Kentucky women receive annual exams and/or mammogram vouchers from the Health Department each year. Through the Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program, the Health Department has been offering subsidized cancer screening services since 2002.

For more information on the Prevention Pays screening days or other women’s health programs at the Northern Kentucky Health Department, please call 859.341.4264 or visit
http://www.nkyhealth.org.

Community Prevention Pays Events

The coalition also hosts community Prevention Pays events, which are generously supported with grants from the Susan G. Komen foundation and Avon. The screenings are available to women who don’t have a private health insurance
plan, Medicare or Medicaid; or women who have insurance, but it either doesn’t cover women’s cancer screening services or the deductibles for these services are high.

To be eligible, women must be 40 or older, or have a doctor’s prescription for a mammogram. It must be your first mammogram or your first mammogram in more than two years.

To schedule an appointment, please call one of the follow organizations:

St. Elizabeth Medical Center, 859.815.1385

St. Elizabeth Mobile Van, 859.344.LIVE

St. Luke Hospitals, 859.572.3440

Jewish Hospital Mobile Van—Health Alliance, 513.686.3300

Kentucky Women's Cancer Screening Program

The Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program is one of many services coordinated by the Kentucky Department for Public Health and provided through the Northern Kentucky Health Department locally.

The Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program provides breast and cervical screening and follow-up services, professional education, public education, outreach, quality assurance and surveillance. Screening and follow-up services are provided at the Health Department’s county health centers

Boone County Health Center, 7505 Burlington Pike, Florence, Ky., 859.353.2060

Campbell County Health Center, 12 E. Fifth St., Newport, Ky., 859.431.1704

Grant County Health Center, 234 Barnes Road, Williamstown, Ky., 859.824.5074

Kenton County Health Center, 2002 Madison Ave., Covington, Ky. 859.431.3345

The program is funded by both state and federal funds and is part of the National Breast and
Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program.

For more information and a list of providers outside of Northern Kentucky, visit the
Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program Web site

Past projects

Bra Tagging/Pharmacy Project

In 2003-2004, members of the coalition, along with volunteers from a variety of community groups, attached important information about breast and cervical health to the tags of bras in local department stores. The program was expanded to include information to be handed out with prescriptions at local pharmacies. Through the program, more than 17,000 people were educated about breast and cervical health.

Community Education Opportunities

Women's Cancer Conference: Women and Smoking
Sept. 16, 2008, Florence Government Center, Florence, Ky.

This course is designed to educate nurses, social workers and
other health care providers about the effects of smoking on women’s cancer, regarding disease processes, cross-generational effects and issues related to addiction.

Learn more by
reading the conference brochure.

Beads of life

Women age 40 to 64 who have an annual exam can receive something extra to take with them: A necklace and a bookmark about breast self exams. It’s called “Beads of Life” and is a project coordinated members of the cancer coalition. The different size beads correspond to the different size lumps that women can find in their breast. The necklaces are designed to give women a visual image of breast lumps and to encourage mammograms.

Partner with the Coalition

Members of the cancer coalition are available to speak at fundraisers and other educational events. Past presentations include partnering with the Coldwater Creek clothing store at the Crestview Hills Town Center for an open house, and a presentation to a sorority at Northern Kentucky University. For more information, please contact Donna Mullen at 859.431.3345, Ext. 2609 or Donna.Mullen@ky.gov.

How You Can Help

Cheers for the Cure

The "Cheers for the Cure!" fundraiser for 2007 is scheduled for 5 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, May 2, 2007, at the Pub at Crestivew Hills, 2853 Dixie Highway, Crestview Hills, Ky. The event will include hors dourves, wine, beer, raffles, silent auction, live jazz and lots of Cheers for the Cure. Tickets are $35 in advance, and due to limited space, reservations are required. Reserve your spot by e-mailing
CheersForTheCure@TavernRestaurantGroup.com or call 513.605.4700, ext. 14.

Hundreds of local women gathered at The Pub Crestview Hills on May 3, 2006, for the first ever “Cheers for the Cure!” fundraiser. The ladies-only event featured cocktails,appetizers, raffles and a silent auction. A total of $11,283 was raised at the event to benefit the cancer coalition.

How to Volunteer

Volunteers are a critical part of the cancer coalition. Being a volunteer allows you to be instrumental in helping to promote and participate in community wide activities that support women's cancer detection. Early detection is sometimes the difference between life and death. There are many ways to volunteer, and volunteers will be placed based on their skills. For more information about volunteer opportunities, please contact Donna Mullen at 859.431.3345, Ext. 2609 or Donna.Mullen@ky.gov.

How to Donate

It is only through the generous support of individual donors and corporate donors that we are able to provide life-saving screening projects in our community. Your generosity is what allows us to fulfill our mission and affect so many lives.

To make a donation by mail:

Northern Kentucky Women's Cancer Coalition

P.O. Box 18553

Erlanger, KY 41018

Or if you have additional questions, please contact Donna Mullen at 859.431.3345, Ext. 2609 or Donna.Mullen@ky.gov.

Corporate Sponsorship

Generous support from local businesses has made it possible for the cancer coalition to provide much-needed services to local women. If your company is interested in sponsoring the Northern Kentucky Women’s Cancer Coalition or a particular coalition event, please contact Donna Mullen at 859.431.3345, Ext. 2609 or
Donna.Mullen@ky.gov.

Education

Facts About Breast Cancer

American Cancer Society’s guidelines for breast cancer screening:

Yearly mammograms are recommended starting at age 40 and continuing for as long as a woman is in good health.

Clinical breast exam should be part of a periodic health exam, about every three years for women in their 20’s and 30’s and every year for women 40 and over.

Women should know how their breasts normally feel and report any breast change promptly to their health care providers. Breast self-exam (BSE) is an option for women starting in their 20’s.

Women at increased risk (for example, family history, genetic tendency, past breast cancer) should talk with their doctors about the benefits and limitations of starting mammography screening earlier, having additional tests (for example, breast ultrasound or MRI), or having more frequent exams.

Other statistics:

One in eight women will develop breast cancer at some time in her life. In the United States a woman has about a 13 percent lifetime risk of developing breast cancer.

Only 5-to-10 percent of breast cancers occur in women with a history of breast cancer in her family.

The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 3,000 Kentucky women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year.

The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 600 Kentucky women will die of breast cancer each year.
More information:

American Cancer Society

Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program

Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation

Facts About Cervical Cancer

American Cancer Society’s guidelines for cervical cancer screening

All women should begin cervical cancer screening about 3 years after they begin having vaginal intercourse, but no later than when they are 21 years old. Screening should be done every year with the regular Pap test or every 2 years using the newer liquid-based Pap test.

Beginning at age 30, women who have had 3 normal Pap test results in a row may get screened every 2 to 3 years. Another reasonable option for women over 30 is to get screened every 3 years (but not more frequently) with either the conventional or liquid-based Pap test, plus the HPV DNA test. Women who have certain risk factors such as diethylstilbestrol (DES) exposure before birth, HIV infection, or a weakened immune system due to organ transplant, chemotherapy, or chronic steroid use should continue to be screened annually.

Women 70 years of age or older who have had 3 or more normal Pap tests in a row and no abnormal Pap test results in the last 10 years may choose to stop having cervical cancer screening. Women with a history of cervical cancer, DES exposure before birth, HIV infection or a weakened immune system should continue to have screening as long as they are in good health.

Women who have had a total hysterectomy (removal of the uterus and cervix) may also choose to stop having cervical cancer screening, unless the surgery was done as a treatment for cervical cancer or precancer. Women who have had a hysterectomy without removal of the cervix should continue to follow the guidelines above.

Other facts about cervical cancer

About eight of our every 100,000 women in Kentucky will be diagnosed with cervical cancer, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

About 3 out of every 100,000 women in Kentucky will die from cervical cancer, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

More information:

American Cancer Society

Kentucky Women’s Cancer Screening Program

Contact Us

For more information on the Northern Kentucky Women’s Cancer Coalition, please contact:

Donna Mullen, RN, BSN, President
P.O. Box 18553
Erlanger,KY 41018
859.341.3345, Ext. 2609

Donna.Mullen@ky.gov