Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia Expands Breast Cancer Ca...( ATLANTA Oct. 28 /- As October Bre...),Health

ATLANTA, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- As October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, draws to a close, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGa) understands that it is truly a year-round effort, and is taking additional steps to further improve breast cancer care and awareness for its members. The BCBSGa Breast Cancer Care Program, designed for patients with breast cancer and their physicians, has helped more than 16,000 Georgians navigate through the emotional hardship experienced when undergoing treatment/care for breast cancer.

The goals of this quality improvement program are:

-- To improve breast cancer care and to provide awareness and targeted interventions that will promote informed decision making through meaningful discussions between the patient and the health care team

-- To improve appropriate treatment selections consistent with accepted standards of care and best practice guidelines

-- To provide frontline support to patients with breast cancer.

"It is a wonderful surprise, and a great feeling, to know my insurance company cares," noted Jenifer Hinkemeyer, BCBSGa member. "The program includes useful resources that helped me understand and cope with my diagnosis and treatment."

"When we developed the program, we formed two advisory panels, one of physicians and one of survivors and support organization leaders, to ensure we would provide the most beneficial program for all audiences," said Sandra White, M.D., medical director, BCBSGa. "We identified the most salient messages for each audience in order to ensure the information provided would be well-received and informative. Materials were developed and the program rollout began. We are thrilled with the response thus far and are continuing to expand materials and outreach."

With feedback from the advisory panels, BCBSGa created four new collateral pieces. The materials address the various needs of breast cancer patients at different stages of their c
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