Friday, May 2, 2025
5/2/2025
Accelerating Cancer Screening - In this project, Lone Star Community Health Center, Inc. (DBA Lone Star Family Health Center), an H80 grant recipient and the only federally qualified health center headquartered in Montgomery County, Texas, is partnering with MD Anderson Cancer Center, a nationally recognized, award-winning, and NCI-designated cancer center, to enhance screening and referral rates for breast cancer, colorectal cancer, and cervical cancer in an underserved patient population. In Lone Star Family Health Center’s service areas of Montgomery County, Harris County, and Walker County, Texas, the target patient population experiences breast, colorectal, and cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates that are higher than state and national averages. Despite patients’ elevated health risks, the screening and referral rates at Lone Star Family Health Center for all three types of cancer are significantly lower than our goals. With the aim of substantially improving these metrics, Lone Star Family Health Center will partner with MD Anderson Cancer Center to enhance outreach, care coordination, eligibility assistance, and patient navigation services to improve access and mitigate barriers to care. In addition, Lone Star Family Health Center will provide access to transportation for patients and partner with MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide mail-in fecal immunochemical tests (FIT) to patients for colorectal screenings. Both measures will mitigate barriers to care, thereby supporting the aim of expanding access and affordability. Lone Star Family Health Center will augment patient engagement and activation by deploying community health workers and improving staff training to improve patient experience. Lone Star Family Health Center and MD Anderson Cancer Center will collaborate to track patient screening, referrals, and follow-up to improve screening and referral rates. Lone Star Family Health Center will also enhance health IT workflows to meet the same objective. Lastly, Lone Star Family Health Center will strengthen workforce training for their staff provided by MD Anderson Cancer Center to bolster workforce development.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).