Women Helping Women Initiative

The Hancock Health Women Helping Women initiative helps support healthcare services for under/uninsured women in our community, including mammograms, ultrasounds, biopsies, education, navigation, and support services.

The initiative has been a pillar of breast cancer awareness, prevention, and advocacy in our community for decades. Through the annual Women Helping Women Celebration, we raise crucial funding for the clinic, ensuring healthcare access for hundreds of local women in need.

In 1998, a Women’s Health Task Force identified a community need for breast health education and funding for mammograms for those without insurance. Foundation Director, Myra Bleill, along with a group of dedicated volunteers, created Women Helping Women to help fill this need, and the first fundraising dinner was held. Since then, the program has grown tremendously in size and scope. The first celebration raised enough to pay for 26 mammograms. Now, the program covers screening and diagnostic mammograms, pelvic exams and ultrasounds, clinical breast exams, biopsies, bone density screenings as well as providing education, navigation, and support services. All within the Women’s Clinic at Hancock Regional Hospital, located within the James T. Anderson, M.D. Center for Women’s Health

A pillar of breast cancer awareness, prevention, and advocacy in our community for decades, the annual Women Helping Women celebration has become one of the largest fundraising events in Hancock County. Held in October of each year to coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the event includes a dinner, auction, speakers, and honoring those who have battled breast cancer. While it was initially created as a women-only event, today, the celebration looks much different with attendees of all ages, genders, and walks of life. If women’s health is important to you, this is the place to be each October!

The Women Helping Women committee is made up of individuals who are committed to improving women’s health in our community. Many of these volunteers are breast cancer survivors themselves or have someone close to them who has fought the disease. The committee spends a few months each year planning and organizing the annual celebration. There are a variety of volunteer opportunities within this committee- from sponsorships to decorations to the basket auction- and we are always looking for new committee members. If you are interested in joining this fun group, call the Stiftung office at 317-468-4177.

The Hancock Health Women’s Clinic serves at-risk uninsured or underinsured women who meet income guidelines. The clinic provides basic health services, including clinical breast exams, and screening and diagnostic breast procedures (including mammograms, ultrasounds and biopsies), gynecological services including Pap and pelvic exams, hormone replacement counseling, birth control counseling, and nonsurgical gynecologic issues. Services are available to men too, if needed. The clinic is staffed by an experienced women’s health nurse practitioner and a clinic coordinator and overseen by a Hancock OB/GYN physician. The clinic is open to all women, both insured and uninsured. Funding for the Women’s Clinic comes from multiple sources, but a large portion of the clinic is funded through donations to Women Helping Women. Find more information here or for appointments, please call the clinic coordinator at (317) 468-4641.