Dr. Kyle’s Mammogram Experience

I don’t know about you, but I find mammograms to be a little scary. Every year I think, is it my year to join my sister, who got breast cancer at age 38? Is it my year to get chemo? Can I beat it so it doesn’t change my life permanently?

And then my rational doctor-brain kicks in: we can detect breast cancer on mammograms two years before it can be felt. We can pick something up early so it’s just a bump in the road for your life, and doesn’t alter your life irrevocably. Detection and treatments are so good these days. 3D mammogram technology decreases callbacks and false positives, which puts both doctors and patients at ease.

 

Scheduling My Appointment

Just like the patients I care for, I schedule my yearly mammogram through the appointment call center, sit in the waiting room and anxiously await my results. Here is my recent experience getting a mammogram at Women’s Care.

I called 541-868-9700, the same number my patients call, and made the appointment. The women in the call center treated me the same way I treat my patients: with kindness, compassion and patience. Everyone I talked to was super sweet and they didn’t yet know it was “Dr. Kyle.” Well done, call center sisters!

 

My First 3D Mammogram

A month later, I went to our office on Country Club Road (my practice is at the Riverbend office) saying “hi” to the women at the front desk, who are my friends. I took a seat in the beautifully remodeled waiting room and quietly judged the remodel choices of my partner doctors. Nice chairs! Nice granite! I liked the spacers between check-ins that felt private and personal! I smiled at some little kids with pregnant mommies in the waiting room. Then I heard my name called to go back.

The radiation technologist escorted me back to the room with the gorgeous new mammography machine that has a special place in my heart. I remember the doctors agonizing over the specifics of this technology. We wanted the VERY BEST for our patients, the highest quality, the curved paddles that “squished” the least and the latest 3D technology. At last, it was my turn in the machine.

I glanced over at the quilt that my best friend’s family friend made just for our office. With beautiful appliqué, it uses different kinds of fruit to represent the many shapes and sizes of women’s breasts. She had a scare and wanted our patients to feel loved. As I got ready for my mammogram, I debated which fruit I was on the quilt. The sweet technologist reminded me ever so gently to not giggle. Ok. No movement! I smiled at the kindness of the woman who made this quilt, and before I knew it, the four views were over. So quickly! I was comfortable, respected and empowered at the same time. I thanked the tech for her kindness towards all our patients and then, I was back out in the waiting room, saying goodbye to my friends at the front desk.

 

Dr. Kyle with 3D mammogram machine and fruit quilt

 

My Mammogram Results

This year, my results were normal. I found out by mail with a pink letter arriving one week after my appointment. That was quick! I celebrated the strength of my sister as I opened the letter, knowing that if the results were different, my doctor at Women’s Care would have had my back and helped me every step of the way.

I enjoyed the care processes that we have made as partners at Women’s Care, feeling reassured that we truly do treat our patients as we would ourselves: with kindness, dignity, and honor. Please let us know what your experiences are, as we are always striving to be better. And please get your mammogram!

 

With Love,

Dr. Brooke Kyle 

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Dr. Brooke Kyle, MD is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist, practicing at the Women’s Care Riverbend office in Springfield. She did her undergraduate training at Vanderbilt University and complete her OB/GYN residency at Louisiana Health Sciences University in New Orleans. Prior to joining the Women’s Care team, Dr. Kyle practiced in Miami and Australia. Her specialties include in-office surgeries, such as Essure hysteroscopic tubal sterilization and other minimally invasive surgeries. She has a special interest in helping patients with postpartum depression, endocrine problems and menopausal concerns. Dr. Kyle also speaks Spanish.