Mercy mammograms halted again

TIFFIN — Mercy Health Tiffin Hospital suspended its mammogram services in July 2025 after an accreditation review flagged potential problems with the hospital's testing and results. The suspension stemmed from concerns identified during an accreditation review of patient positioning and clinical image quality, Kara Franz, public relations and communications manager for Bon Secours Mercy Health, told the Advertiser-Tribune at the time, according to past reporting. Mercy Health - Perrysburg Hospital also was affected. Impacted patients were notified at the time that the facility was "actively working with our accrediting bodies" and had "taken many of the steps towards revitalizing and enhancing processes, training and communication," according to information Mercy provided then. Patients who may have been affected were notified by mail, and Mercy established a dedicated call line, 419-455-7040, and email, mammographycallcenter@mercy.com, to field patient and provider questions, according to past reporting. In a follow-up story published Nov. 4, the Advertiser-Tribune asked Franz how many Tiffin patients were impacted, whether Mercy planned to compensate patients for repeated tests, what the timeline was for resuming mammograms at Tiffin and Perrysburg, and whether any negative effects, such as a missed diagnosis, had been reported. Those questions went unanswered in Mercy's response at the time, and Franz did not confirm how many patients received letters or whether any had experienced adverse outcomes. The Advertiser-Tribune reached out to Franz last week for an update on mammogram services in Tiffin and received the following response: "As part of our work to enhance processes and training, we identified additional opportunities to strengthen breast imaging at Mercy Health Tiffin Hospital and paused mammography services last month. We remain committed to delivering exceptional, compassionate care and continue to work with our patients to ensure they have access to high-quality mammography services. Our ministry continues to offer accredited and certified mammography services at Mercy Health - Defiance Hospital, Mercy Health - St. Charles Hospital, Mercy Health - St. Anne Hospital, Mercy Health - Willard Hospital, Mercy Health - St. Luke's Imaging and Mammography and Mercy Health - St. Rita's Medical Center, as well as our Mercy Health mobile mammography unit." The response indicates mammogram services had resumed at Tiffin Hospital at some point after the initial pause before being stopped again last month. The Advertiser-Tribune also contacted Mercy Health Tiffin directly to ask about its mammogram services and confirmed the facility once again is not performing the testing. Additional details were requested from Franz but a response had not been received by press time.