James De Luca M.D., Radiologist
Dr. James T. De Luca is respected as a pioneer in the science of mammography.
Dr. De Luca a board certified Radiologist, was the first recipient of
the U.S.P.H Mammography Teaching Grant for North Eastern United States
in 1963. He trained 900 doctors in the interpretation of mammography.
He has been a lecturer for the American College of Radiology, (ACR), and
the American Cancer Society, (ACS). He had been a member of the Board
of Directors at the ACS, and has served on the Committee on Mammography
and Disease of the Breast and for he Committee on Breast Cancer for the
ACR.
Richard Stapen M.D., Radiologist
Dr. Richard L. Stapen is a board certified radiologist who helped launch
the program in 1984. He was the Director of the Department of Radiology
at Hempstead General Hospital from 1991 through 2003. In 2003 he returned
the program as an interpreting radiologist. His contribution to the
success of the program can not be measured.
Mary Solomon, Scan Van Director
Mary has been the program director since 1987.
Her responsibilities include directing mobile mammography program day-to-day
operations including marketing, staffing, financial aspects, medical reporting,
and patient navigation. The latter two areas are directly supervised by
Medical Director James De Luca, MD, board certified radiologist. Solomon
is responsible for design and maintenance of the computer system, maintaining
patient information, generating mammography reports, patient notifications,
scheduling services and staff, billing, and accounts payable and receivable.
She attended Stony Brook University, majoring in mathematics and computer
science. Previously, Solomon was Lead Specialist of the National Technical
Support Center for Arrow Electronics.
Debra Thomas and Venicia Belus Brown Radiological Technicians
Debra and Venicia are licensed x-ray technologists who have been
specializing in mammography for many years. They are both highly skilled
radiological technicians. Perhaps their most important attribute is their ability
to make women comfortable with this important examination. Thousands of
women return to the van annually and are both relieved and pleased to
find these dedicated professionals are on board year after year to provide
them with their mammography.
Gina Cintron, Driver / Receptionist
Gina has been driving our mobile mammography vans for almost 14 years.
Gina has driven thousands of miles throughout the New York Metropolitan
area in our various mobile mammography vans over the years. Gina is bilingual
and greets patients in both English and Spanish. She assists the patients
in completing the medical history forms, surveys, and release statements
insuring that the data collection is accurate and complete.
Marge Baldi, Patient Navigator
Marge provides patient navigation for the
program. She makes first contact with patients in need of follow-up. Marge
advises and educates patients and families regarding the nature of the
abnormal findings. She arranges follow-up appointments for the patients
with a provider that either participates in the patient's insurance plan
or with a provider that will provide free follow-up examinations. Marge's
ability to convey to the patients the results of their mammography and
clinical breast examinations in easy to understand terms, and as her kind
and gentle consideration for the special needs of individuals makes her
a tremendous asset to the program. Marge attended nursing school at Nassau
County Community College. Previously Marge worked for South Shore Home
Health Care, coordinating appropriate nursing care for patients.
Lorraine Birchall, Patient Navigator
Lorraine insures patient compliance and that follow-up is completed properly.
She keeps in contact with follow-up patients to make sure they keep appointments
and their care is completed. Lorraine requests follow-up reports which
are reviewed to insure that follow-up patients are provided with appropriate
and complete care. Lorraine's organizational skills and persistent approach
makes her an ideal navigator. Lorraine has been responsible for urging
patients to complete their follow-up even when some patients initially
refused to comply. Lorraine previously worked at Hempstead General Hospital
for 34 years. Her commitment to patient care is evident in our statistics
which reveal a low rate of patients refusing follow-up.
Erin Anderson, Medical Transcriber / In Reach-Outreach Worker
Erin has been a valued employee of the WON program for many years.
She is responsible for the timely reporting of the mammogram and
clinical breast examinations. Erin insures that the mammographic
reports are complete and accurate. She sends the reports to both
patients and their doctors. Erin sends each patient a letter
indicating the outcome of their examination and advises them when it
would be appropriate for them to return for their next screening exam.
She maintains patient charts insuring films and reports are kept
properly for future comparison studies. She is bi-lingual in
Emnglish ans Spanish. She provides In-Reach by calling patients
back for annual exams. She distributes flyers and outreach
materials to community organizers. Erin has crossed trained in
all other areas of the program and is able to assist any other staff
member.
Melissa Cabalis, Data Manager
Melissa maintains the patient data system that allows
our program to operate efficiently and effectively. Melissa also prepares patient charts for radiological interpretation.
Melissa is also responsible for accounts receivable and reporting to the
Partnerships.
