Many of our supporters know and believe in UHRU’s mission – To improve the health and well-being of rural and underserved people worldwide. And most supporters know that our two projects, the Georgia Colon Cancer Prevention Project and the Gujarat Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Project, increase access to cancer screening among underserved communities in Georgia, USA and India, respectively. However, many of our supporters may not know exactly how their donations of money and time impact the communities we serve.
First, I would like to explain who we consider to be underserved community members. We define underserved as having inadequate service; specifically, with regard to health services. It refers to people who are disadvantaged because of ability to pay, ability to access care, or other disparities for reasons of race, religion, language group, social status, or geography. UHRU strives to level the playing field so anyone who is underserved can have access to health care and experience health outcomes equivalent to or better than the average person. These are lofty goals, but we believe everyone should have a healthy and gratifying life.
In Georgia, we partner with community health centers to help them screen more patients for colorectal cancer. In Athens, we created a colorectal cancer screening program for our partner, the Athens Nurses Clinic. Together, we are screening our most underserved community members, those who are uninsured and experiencing poverty. Without our program, these community members would have no access to colorectal cancer screening, and for many of them, this is their first time being screened. In just two months of operation, we have screened over 60 people and identified two individuals who require further testing. These two individuals will receive needed care and treatment because of the generosity of Athens area gastroenterologists who are donating colonoscopies. These numbers might seem small, but we are just getting started in Athens. As this program grows and develops, we hope to partner with charitable clinics in other communities in Georgia to increase access to care for more underserved Georgians.
In order to increase access to care and reduce health disparities, we need help from supporters like you. Your financial support allows us to provide care to individuals who would never have access to cancer screening without programs like ours.
A $50 donation supports cancer education and screening for 2 underserved individuals.
A $500 donation supports cancer education and screening for 20 underserved individuals.
A monthly donation helps ensure our programs are sustainable and can reach new communities.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many individuals have delayed seeking medical care, and this delay in care will adversely impact acute and chronic medical conditions as well as delay cancer screenings. The services and support UHRU provide to the underserved are needed now more than ever. I hope you will consider supporting our programs as we move into 2021.
Together, we are not only changing lives but saving them as well.
Sincerely,
Teresa McLean, Executive Director