Wednesday, October 30, 2002

New service available for breast surgery patients

Carla Gober, founder of Gifts from the Heart, is a registered nurse and owner of Beautiful Additions, a boutique dedicated to meeting the needs of women after breast surgery.

In the past as Gober offered individual fittings for her clients, she realized that women had breast prosthesis they were no longer able to wear. Sometimes, women had changes in weight or had gone through reconstructive surgery. For a variety of reasons women had extra prosthesis and were not sure what to do with them.

At the same time due to changes in economy, more women were not covered by private insurance and not eligible for medicare or medicaid. Without any kind of reimbursement, many of these women were simply unable to afford to purchase the silicone prosthesis and surgical bras needed after surgery.

To meet the needs of both these groups, Gifts from the Heart was born. Gently used silicone prothesis donations were accepted and used to assist women in need. Also, Jodee, Inc., one of Beautiful Additions' largest suppliers of prosthesis and surgical bras, has joined in and now donates factory seconds bras to be used in Gifts from the Heart fittings.

September 10, Gifts from the Heart traveled to Thomaston Sept. 10 to assist eight women in conjunction with Upson Regional Medical Center. San Short, R.N., contacted local surgeons and explained the program. The surgeons contacted their patients who met the criteria of having had breast surgery and not having health insurance.

One of the ladies served had surgery 10 years ago and had never been able to afford a prosthesis and bras. "This kind of situation is exactly what Gifts from the Heart was designed to address," said Gober. "I am so excited that we can be of real assistance to these women."

Anyone interested in donating items or receiving assistance from Gifts from the Heart may call and speak with any of the staff of Beautiful Additions at 770-719-9900.