Our Community Need

Susan G. Komen for the Cure® remains committed to fulfilling our promise to save lives and end breast cancer forever through empowering people, ensuring quality care for all, and energizing science to find the cures. Susan G. Komen for the Cure® is focused on reducing breast cancer incidence and mortality within the next decade with increased emphasis on finding solutions for disparities in breast cancer across populations. With funds raised by the Komen Wyoming Affiliate, community grants will be made to support underserved populations and patient navigation throughout the continuum of care in the state of Wyoming.

Every two years, each Komen affiliate conducts a community needs assessment, known as the Community Profile Report, to identify populations most in need of breast services and to identify gaps in services that must be addressed to improve breast health in our community.

The Community Profile is a snapshot of the community at a specific point in time. It is specifically looking at breast health and breast cancer. The profile includes:

• demographics, such as population by age, race, ethnicity, education and income levels,
• breast cancer statistics, such as screening, incidence and mortality rates,
• an assessment of current services for breast cancer screening and treatment in the community,
• a survey of the community's beliefs and attitudes about breast cancer through interviews with key informants.

Priorities identified by the Community Profile are:

 1.    Provide screening services to underserved populations, including but not limited to: uninsured and underinsured residents, rural and frontier residents, Native American, Hispanic, and other ethnic minority populations.

a.    Special consideration will be given to applications that are designed to serve Fremont, Hot Springs and Weston counties

b.    Special consideration will be given to applications that are designed to serve the Wind River Indian Reservation

2.     Provide a patient navigation system that establishes a “one-stop hub” in communities:

a.    Focuses on the continuum of care:

                                                          i.    outreach

                                                        ii.    screening

                                                       iii.    abnormal and/or treatment and referrals

                                                       iv.    after-care

b.    Is provided by professional navigators with different training backgrounds (lay navigator, clinical navigator, nurse navigator)

c.    Establishes community partnerships to increase public awareness of available resources

3.    Provide transportation from rural communities to available screening or treatment services in other locations.