October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual campaign to raise awareness about the impact of breast cancer. According to the American Association for Cancer Research, breast cancer is the most common type of non-skin cancer in women in the United States, and is second to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in American women. 

At Heritage Valley, we want to make sure that every woman has access to the services she needs and the support she deserves. BreastCare is our comprehensive, integrated breast health care program. The primary locations for the program are the Heritage Valley Women’s Health Centers in Center Township and Robinson Township. We are proud to note that each of the Heritage Valley Women’s Health Centers is designated as a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology (ACR). 

The Heritage Valley BreastCare program offers a range of services, from screening and diagnostic breast imaging to treatments for breast cancer. All these services are available within the Heritage Valley Health System network. Care is delivered by committed, high-quality physicians, so regardless of your situation and treatment plan, you don’t have to travel far for service. Our BreastCare Navigator is specially-trained to work with patients to compassionately coordinate all services.

Beyond the BreastCare program’s homes in Center and Robinson Townships, there are additional screening locations in Calcutta, OH; Chippewa; Edgeworth and Ellwood City. 

Self-Requesting Mammograms - All of our mammography locations offer Self-Requesting Mammograms, which means that a patient may schedule herself for a screening mammogram without a written order from a physician.

Walk-in Mammograms - On Mondays in the Robinson Township and Ellwood City Medical Neighborhoods, women may walk in and request a screening mammogram. No appointment needed!

Screening Mammograms may be scheduled through My Care Link on iHVHS/aHVHS, Heritage Valley’s app. Click here to access My Care Link and click on the Mammography Exam icon.

To schedule Breast Imaging Services at any of our locations, call 1-866-901-MAMO (6266). Click here for more information and to visit our website.

Heritage Valley Flu & Covid Vaccine Clinics are available at our Robinson Township and Center Township Medical Neighborhoods. The schedule for the clinics, which will run from 8 am – 4 pm, is as follows:

Robinson Township ConvenientCare – Mondays & Wednesdays

Center Township ConvenientCare – Tuesdays & Thursdays

Appointments for a flu shot, Covid vaccine, or both may be scheduled on the Heritage Valley app (iHVHS/aHVHS) using My Care Link. Click here for more information. If you do not wish to schedule an appointment, you may simply walk in to either location during the designated clinic times.

Flu and Covid vaccines will also be available at any ConvenientCare site during regular business hours, which are Monday - Saturday, 8:00 am – 7:30 pm and Sunday from 8:00 am - 3:30 pm. Please sign in at the kiosk.

We welcome Dr. Julie Ann Corcoran, FACS to Heritage Valley Multispecialty Group Surgical Associates. She will be practicing in the Sewickley and Bridgewater locations. Dr. Corcoran earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology, with a concentration in Neuroscience, from John Carroll University in Ohio. She earned her Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Corcoran completed a Minimally Invasive Surgery Fellowship at Richmond University Medical Center in New York, and a General Surgery Residency at Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center in Johnstown. She has had additional Robotic/Minimally Invasive Surgery training.

Prior to joining Heritage Valley Health System, Dr. Corcoran worked at Washington Hospital in Washington, PA and Blount Memorial Hospital in Tennessee.

Dr. Corcoran is Board Certified by the American Board of Surgery and is a Fellow in the American College of Surgeons. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Osteopathic Medical Association and the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Corcoran, please call 724-773-6400.

Mental health is an incredibly important part of overall health. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), millions of Americans each year face the reality of living with a mental health condition. Mental illness can affect virtually everyone directly or indirectly through family, friends or coworkers. While it is important to discuss mental health conditions year-round, the first week of October is designated as Mental Awareness Illness Week, and is a time to raise awareness of mental illness, fight discrimination and provide support.

Heritage Valley Health System has a long tradition of serving the behavioral health care needs in the community. Beyond the inpatient Adult Behavioral Health Units at Heritage Valley Kennedy and Heritage Valley Beaver hospitals, the Health System continues a long-standing partnership with Staunton Clinic, an outpatient mental health and resource coordination center that enables care to continue, uninterrupted, when patients return home. Heritage Valley Kennedy also offers an inpatient Geriatric Behavioral Health Unit for those patients 60 years of age and older.

Staunton’s Adult and Child Programs include Outpatient Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, Blended Service Coordination, Certified Peer Support Services, Intellectual Disabilities Support Coordination and Inpatient Services for adults. Adolescent Intensive Outpatient Programs, Adult Intensive Outpatient Programs, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy Groups are also available across our Staunton Clinic satellite locations.

For more information and Behavioral Health locations, click here to visit our website or call the following numbers: 

• Heritage Valley Beaver Adult Behavioral Health Unit: 724-773-4525
• Heritage Valley Kennedy Adult Behavioral Health Unit: 412-847-7510
• Heritage Valley Kennedy Geriatric Behavioral Health Unit: 412-777-6420
• Staunton Clinic: 412-749-7330

If you are having a psychiatric emergency, please call 911 or go to your local Emergency Department. You can also access the crisis numbers listed below:

• Resolve Crisis Network: 1-888-796-8266
• Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: 988

Congress designated the 988 dialing code to operate through the exiting National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration sees 988 as a first step toward a transformed crisis care system in America.