Day Kimball Healthcare (DKH) is now offering an integrated women’s health services program for improving access to cancer screenings and combating heart disease – the Connecticut Early Detection and Prevention Program (CEDPP) and the Connecticut Well Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation Program (WISEWOMAN).*

“We are so fortunate to be able to offer financial support to women in our community through this program,” said John O’Keefe, Chief Nursing Officer and Vice President of Patient Services for Day Kimball Healthcare. “This program will allow eligible women to access comprehensive screening programs through Day Kimball Healthcare to help them maintain better health by making healthier choices.”

CEDPP is a comprehensive screening program available throughout Connecticut for medically underserved women. The program aims to significantly increase women’s access to breast and cervical cancer screening, diagnostic and treatment referral services.

“Prevention and early detection are the emphasis in healthcare today. Women aged 40 years or older who receive timely mammography screenings could reduce their risk of breast cancer death significantly compared to women who are not screened,” said O’Keefe. “In the same way, pap tests can find cervical cancer at an early stage when it is most curable, or even prevent the disease if pre-cancerous lesions are discovered and treated early.”

CEDPP covered services include physical examinations, mammograms, pelvic examinations, pap testing, biopsies, consultations and follow-up office visits. Screenings are designed to help 21-64 year old women reduce their risk for breast cancer and cardiovascular disease.

WISEWOMAN focuses on screening lower-income, uninsured, or under-insured women ages 30-64 for heart disease and provides lifestyle counseling and interventions to navigate women to a healthier life.

Nearly twice as many women in the United States die of heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases as from all forms of cancer, including breast cancer. “WISEWOMAN can help women modify and control risk factors for heart disease such as high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, obesity, physical inactivity and diabetes,” said O’Keefe.

Through WISEWOMAN, eligible women will be offered free blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose screening; health coaching; diabetes education; nutritional consults; smoking cessation; consultations and follow-up office visits.

To be eligible for the CEDPP and WISEWOMAN Program, a woman must have an income at or below 250% of the federal poverty level, be 21-64 for the breast and cervical program, and be 40-64 years of age for the WISEWOMAN program; and woman must have one or all of the following: have no health insurance, or have an insurance deductible of $1,000 or more, or have health insurance that excludes routine blood pressure screening, lipid profile, and blood glucose screenings. Additionally, to be eligible for WISEWOMAN, a woman must be enrolled in CEDPP.

All services are offered free of charge through DKH, a contracted health care provider with the Connecticut Department of Public Health.

Screenings are simple, fast and free for those who qualify. For more information about these programs contact the CT Early Detection and Prevention and WISEWOMAN Program Community Health Navigator Morgan Clark at (203) 814-2369 or (860) 963-3848.

To learn more about cancer care services at DKH visit daykimball.org/cancercare.

*The Connecticut Early Detection and Prevention Program and the Connecticut Well Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the National Program are funded by the Connecticut Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control for the period of January 1, 2019 through June 30, 2023.