There are many common reasons patients tend to give for not getting an annual mammogram. I can’t take time off work. I don’t have any way to get there. There weren’t any appointments open. 

Your gift to Joanie on the Go, the nickname for Mercy Health's Joanie Abdu Comprehensive Breast Care Center Mobile Mammography Unit, helps patients avoid missing important cancer screenings. Just ask Barbara Jackson. She was able to schedule a screening at her church and make a quick trip there for the test.

“A church member who is a nurse let me know about the van, and I signed up right away. It was so easy to get to the church from work. It probably didn’t even take 20 minutes.”

For someone like Barbara, who has faced barriers to getting screened in the past, the convenience of Joanie on the Go was too good to pass up.

“That van is so far beyond my expectations,” she says. “It is gorgeous, very clean and the staff is so friendly and helpful. It was just beautiful! If they’d had more appointments available, I would have been calling friends to do this, too.”

Barbara also appreciated the reminder call prior to her appointment, as well as the quick results showing that her scan was negative.

“Thank you!” she says. “It is such a lovely gesture to support this service and it is one that is much needed in our community. I wouldn’t have considered getting this test done before. I’m so grateful that it is an option for me and others.”