Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms

Executive Summary

Breast cancer is the most common cancer found in women in the United States, regardless of age, race or ethnicity. Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms is a healthcare service that aims to provide on-site, no-cost mammograms for women who wish to be screened for breast cancer. The target market for such a service will be women who have a history of breast cancer in their families, women over age 40, women who meet all or none of these standards but are classified as low-income, women who are uninsured or the elderly. In addition to providing a necessary medical procedure for no cost, Brenda’s Mammograms would seek to heighten the annual percentage of breast cancer patient diagnosis, by raising breast cancer awareness of the disease through the dissemination of educational materials. These educational materials will include information regarding breast cancer prevention, early detection, treatment, education, survivorship and information on how to conduct examinations on oneself without the use of a mammogram unit. The need for such a service remains great, as the 2010 census recorded nearly a quarter-million individuals who were diagnosed with breast cancer- a significant portion of whom fit the demographics this service seeks to aid. In order to accomplish the goal of reaching the many millions of Americans who will need a service like Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms in the near and distant future, it is important that a specific program for screening potential breast cancer patients under the age of 40 be implemented as well. Additionally, partnership or networking with another, larger organization with closely related goals regarding breast cancer awareness and prevention should be both encouraged and accomplished. Furthermore, the provision of case management services for those who will need treatment prior to their referral by an insurance company, doctor or hospital is a must. Finally, the development of community engagement and outreach programs, volunteer programs and fundraisers are essential to the funding and ultimate success of this endeavor.

Situational Analysis

The product being offered by Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms is a mobile mammogram unit that is capable of being transported to different sites where mass screenings of patients can be done. There are various organizations that also offer mobile mammogram services in order to conduct patient screenings at different locations. The two most prominent organizations are the Young Women’s Christian Association in San Bernardino (YWCA) and the Community Hospital of San Bernardino. While these entities and organizations are large and well-funded, the services they provide do not extend as much to the less fortunate; those with low incomes and/or no health insurance. Therefore, women who have no health insurance, a relatively large portion of the healthcare sector, will remain untapped by such entities. In creating an organization that can service this large sector of the healthcare market in a preventative manner, many thousands of deaths due to lack of care or diagnosis for breast cancer can be potentially avoided

Market Needs

In 2010, there were 206,966 women and 2,039 men in the United States diagnosed with breast cancer (CDC). In 2013, there were 232,340 women and 2,240 men diagnosed (“Breast Cancer”). This represents a roughly 12% increase in the number of breast cancer diagnoses in a three year period of time, pointing to a 4% annual increase in the number of breast cancer cases. Of the 232,340 women’s cases documented in 2013, there were 39,620 deaths, resulting in a 17% fatality rate. Additionally, the number of uninsured Americans in 2010 was listed at 49.9 million (“Health Insurance”) and declined to roughly 48 million, though the levels of poverty, unemployment rate, and income disparities remained nearly unchanged (Pear, 2013). Boiled down to the area of San Bernardino, California, the average percentage of individuals who remain uninsured is 15.1% of a 4 million-plus population, resulting in more than 500,000 individuals who are in desperate need of a low cost, affordable cancer screening service.

Macro Environment

The macro-environment within the healthcare sector is privy to scientific advances in a way usually not seen in other sectors of the market, and so the notion of whether or not the macro environment is favorable to a service that renders mobile mammography affordable is evolving. Where previous organizations had taken the stance that automated, preventative services on the order of mammography, MRI or CAT scanning was costly to administer, new advances in imaging technology and the relatively new practice of replacing fully vetted physicians with certified radiologists have kept cost increases for mammograms and other preventative imaging services minimal in relation to other medical procedures. The cheaper and more efficient ways to administer mammograms that have surfaced in recent years lends credence to the idea that the lower-income portion of the market on breast cancer screening and prevention can be accessed in a profitable manner. Additionally, the increase in the level of individuals and households who do not have insurance, are below the poverty line or retain some sort of government-funded assistance ensures that this portion of the market will continue to grow, at least in the short term. Increases in the number of elderly individuals due to longer life spans, coupled with decreased payouts from an unfortunately insolvent social security system, creates a demand from the elderly population for preventative medical services they otherwise would not be able to afford. The demographic splits in San Bernardino California are prime targets for a service on the order of Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms, as there are relatively high rates of poverty, unemployment and individuals with failing or poor health status in relation to other communities (California Health Almanac). An additional positive aspect to the San Bernardino/Riverside area in terms of creating a serviceable enterprise for low-cost healthcare is the very high percentage (a combined 41.3% of the population) of citizens who are either uninsured or on retainer for Medicare, Medicaid or other public health programs at the state, county or local level.

About Our Company

Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms is a company founded in order to pay homage to a dear friend lost to breast cancer. It seeks to increase the level of breast cancer awareness and potentially decrease the number of fatal cases through the combined efforts of aggressive screening procedures and the dissemination of educational and informational materials. The demographics attempted to be reached by Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms are primarily women, who have no health insurance or cannot afford it, or who remain below the poverty line. Additional demographics include the elderly, young women and middle-aged women, regardless of the socio-economic situation.

Mission Statement

Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms is a full-service, patient-oriented provider of mammography screening intended to diagnose individuals with breast cancer; it is a non-profit venture, with all of the proceeds being funneled to the care of the patients and maintenance and repair of the equipment. Additionally, Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms service is a mobile mammogram service looking to serve all women in the cities and rural communities of San Bernardino, California, with aspirations of eventually serving the entire continental United States.

Service Offering

The services offered by Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms encompass a wide array of screening options, in addition to several different levels of exposure and dissemination of informational and educational materials. The services regarding screenings include basic mammography screenings and referrals for biopsies on the order of core needle biopsies, direct frontal biopsies, open surgical biopsies, and vacuum-assisted biopsies. Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms also provides financial services that will work with existing financial and healthcare institutions to create a payment plan that is ideal for the patient’s economic situation in the event of a positive diagnosis and biopsy referral. With regards to the creation and dissemination of educational materials, Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms offers an array of instructional and information seminars, videos, reading materials and more to enlighten patients and prospective patients to the signs and symptoms of breast cancer, methods of treatment including outpatient breast cancer surgery, conducting self-examinations and helpful tips and tools to navigate through the complex web of doctors, hospitals and insurance providers should a patient receive a positive diagnosis via mammography screening.

Positioning

The main competitors with Brenda’s Mobile Mammography are organizations such as the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) and the Community Hospital of San Bernardino. Each of these competitors caters to the low-income and uninsured population, but Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms aims to be the organization that can offer mammogram screening for no cost at a much higher frequency and quality than either the YWCA or the Community Hospital of San Bernardino. The YWCA, while also a nonprofit, seldom holds events for free mammogram screenings in the San Bernardino area and the Community Hospital of San Bernardino, while ideal for those with low incomes and no insurance, does tend to cost quite a bit more than these types of demographics can often afford. Therefore, Brenda’s Mobile Mammograms is in a position to succeed as the only organization in the Riverside/San Bernardino area of California to provide free, quality mammogram screening services to as many patients as possible, as frequently as possible.

References

Breast Cancer. (n.d.). Home Page. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/

Breast Cancer Statistics. (2013, October 23). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/statistics/

Health Insurance. (n.d.). Highlights: 2010. http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/hlthins/data/incpovhlth/2010/highlights.html

Pear, R. (2013, September 17). Percentage of Americans Lacking Health Coverage Falls Again. The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/18/us/percentage-of-americans-lacking-health-coverage-falls-again.html?_r=0

(2009). Riverside/San Bernardino: Sprawling Area, Economic Woes Create Access Challenges. California Healthcare Almanac, (Regional Markets Issue Brief), 13. http://www.chcf.org/~/media/MEDIA%20LIBRARY%20Files/PDF/A/PDF%20AlmanacRegMktBriefRiverside09.pdf