SOUTH JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — Virtua Health is rolling out a mobile cancer-screening unit to help deliver care to people from underserved communities.
The 40-foot exam room on wheels — complete with a mammogram machine — is more like a rockstar tour bus than a school bus. Health equity is one of the goals of this program, and Virtua Health’s Lisa Rosenberry says bringing cancer screenings to people where they are is one way to achieve that.
“I’m a social worker by trade, so this is right up my alley,” Rosenberry said. “This has been years in the making. I have to admit, when I walked on the unit for the first time I had tears in my eyes.”
Rosenberry says they are prioritizing women who are uninsured or underinsured.
“We will be doing cervical screening in the form of pap smear as well as offering patients the option of colorectal fit testing, which is a mail away stool kit for an appointment with a GI provider to get a colonoscopy. With our uninsured men, we will also be offering prostate.”
Rosenberry says it’s not just for women. Men are also eligible for exams, including screenings for prostate cancer.
“We will bring the van there. We have a coordinator that’s responsible for scheduling. We have a web page that’s going to detail all the elements needed for us to come to your area.”
Michelle Fisher is a nurse who will be working on board.
“We want a patient to come on and feel that you are actually in a doctor’s office and you’re not receiving any less because of the medium through which you are being provided care.”
Groups and organizations with 20 or more people interested are encouraged to reach out to Virtua to set up a site visit.
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