Better Health for Women in Southern Arizona

The Promise of Academic Medicine: Banner – University Medicine

The first academic medical enterprise with two Arizona-based partners was born in 2015, when Banner Health affiliated with the University of Arizona Health Network to create Banner – University Medicine. This division includes Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix and in Tucson, two academic medical centers: Banner – University Medical Center Tucson and South, and a state-of-the-art, multidisciplinary adult outpatient services center: Banner – University Medicine North.

Representing just 7% of U.S. hospitals, academic medical centers are the “crown jewels” of American health care, offering the very best resources to take care of every patient’s needs—from routine procedures to highly complex cases. At these teaching hospitals, medical education, research, and expert clinical care converge under one roof, offering leading-edge technology, resources, and therapies that community hospitals may not have available.

Since the merger, nonprofit Banner Health and the University of Arizona have been committed to co-creating a new brand of academic medicine that leverages the strengths and scale of each partner to elevate clinical delivery, education, and research for our entire state.

Addressing Disparities in Health Care

Too often, women’s health is thought of as those conditions exclusively affecting women—maternal care and breast care, as examples. But there are important gender differences in disease progression, symptomatology, and treatment across a broad range of conditions that affect both men and women—from cardiovascular disease to cancer to neurological disorders. Despite these known differences, many commonly used treatment approaches were developed predominantly through research on men and may not be as successful when administered to women.

Research on disparities between how women and men are treated in medical settings is also growing. The medical profession has come to realize that one of the most pervasive implicit biases—unconscious biases that are usually not linked to consciously held prejudiced attitudes—in the medical system relates to gender specifically. Studies show:

• Both doctors and nurses prescribe less pain medication to women than men after surgery, even though women report more frequent and severe pain levels. In a survey of more than 2,400 women with chronic pain, 83% said they felt they had experienced gender discrimination from their health care providers.

• A University of Pennsylvania study found that women waited 16 minutes longer than men to receive pain medication when they visited an Emergency Room. Women are also more likely to be told their pain is “psychosomatic,” or influenced by emotional distress.

• A Yale cardiology study found that many women hesitated to seek help for a heart attack because they worried about being thought of as hypochondriacs.

This understanding that women have different health care needs than men—and that they’re often not taken as seriously as their male counterparts when reporting symptoms—has fostered important changes in clinical care for women.

Key Initiatives to Advance Women’s Health Care

Banner – University Medicine is committed to meeting the health care needs of women in Southern Arizona by advancing three key initiatives in Tucson:

Women’s Health Patient Navigation Program

Cardiology, Urology, and OB-GYN clinic enhancements

Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship

Philanthropic Investment: $1.3 million

Patient Navigation: The Cornerstone of Coordinated Care

Banner seeks to establish a Women’s Health Navigation Program in Tucson that focuses on screening as the gateway to women’s health. Initial focus areas will be mammography, gynecology, heart and stroke, and bone density screenings for female patients at Banner primary care clinics.

If a screening exam is positive, Women’s Health Navigators will be incorporated into the patient’s care team to provide a single point of contact offering support and guidance through every step of their health care journey.

We will initiate the program with five Nurse Navigators and two Patient Navigators, with plans to expand as patient volume grows. Nurse Navigators will facilitate and coordinate clinical care while Patient Navigators will provide administrative support such as scheduling appointments, obtaining records, etc. These Women’s Health Navigators will provide support across all specialty areas and receive the appropriate training to provide the best possible care and service.

This impactful initiative requires philanthropic investment of $1.3 million. Banner Health will invest an additional $1.2 million to launch and sustain the program over time.

“For both the patient and caregiver, Patient Navigation makes the health care and hospital environments seem more personal and caring. Sometimes patients forget to ask a question of their physician or think of other questions after they see them. Patient Navigators can answer complicated questions directly, relay messages between patients and their care team, give simple instructions, and make follow-up appointments—saving time for patients and providers.”

NANCY DAVIS Tucson resident and care partner

Philanthropic Investment: $400,000

Cardiology, Urology and OB-GYN Clinic Enhancements

In many of our larger Cardiology, Urology and OB-GYN clinics, creating a warm and welcoming environment can be challenging due to the sheer size of the clinic spaces. To create a more inviting environment, we seek to modify our check-in and rooming process to be more individualized and welcoming. We will also create dedicated clinic exam rooms designed to give female patients a more relaxing and soothing experience. This includes expanding gown choices for female patients, using softer colors and fabrics, utilizing a hand-held paging system for more personalized check-in, and in our OB-GYN clinics, painting accent walls in relaxing colors.

Philanthropic Investment: $100,000/year

Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship

Banner – University Medical Center Tucson and the University of Arizona College of Medicine are partnering to develop a Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship led by Dr. Christian Twiss and Dr. Joel Funk, with adjunct faculty, Dr. Ilana Addis and Dr. John Heusinkveld. This fellowship will provide extensive training in the comprehensive evaluation and treatment of pelvic floor disorders, including urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapses, complex voiding dysfunction, and complex pelvic reconstruction. This will include the latest open, transvaginal, and robotic surgical techniques, including non-mesh techniques to address pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence.

Philanthropic Investment Opportunity

As a nonprofit health care system, Banner Health relies on charitable investment to support a variety of patient care programs, emerging initiatives, supportive resources for families, technological innovation, and research activities that fall outside the traditional model of care delivery and reimbursement. Our goal is to raise $1.8 million to advance these three initiatives to improve women’s health care in Tucson. 100% of charitable gifts will support these programs.

Ways to Give

You can play a direct role in supporting the health and well-being of women in southern Arizona now and for years to come. Invest in these worthwhile initiatives with a tax-deductible gift to the Banner Health Foundation. Gifts of cash, stock or securities, multi-year pledges, and recurring monthly gifts are welcome. As this initiative is long-term, we welcome a gift in your estate plan to provide ongoing support in the future. Commemorative naming opportunities are available to recognize significant gifts.

To discuss giving opportunities, please contact:

Debbie Sheppard, CFRE Chief Development Officer, Tucson

debbie.sheppard@bannerhealth.com

520-694-3967

About Banner Health

Headquartered in Arizona, Banner Health is one of the largest nonprofit health care systems in the country. The system owns and operates 30 acute-care hospitals, Banner Health Network, Banner – University Medicine, academic and employed physician groups, long-term care centers, outpatient surgery centers and an array of other services, including Banner Urgent Care, family clinics, home care and hospice services, pharmacies and a nursing registry. Banner Health is in six states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Wyoming. For more information, please visit www.bannerhealth.com.

About Banner Health Foundation

Established in 2001, the Banner Health Foundation engages the community and stewards charitable gifts to advance Banner Health’s nonprofit mission of making health care easier so life can be better. Contributions are invested locally to support patient care programs and services operated by Banner’s many hospitals and health care facilities in Arizona and Wyoming. For more information, please visit www.bannerhealthfoundation.org.