Can Women Facilitate Men's Prostate Cancer Screening Informed Decision-Making? The M-PACT Trial.

The M-PACT study compared an all-male with a mixed-sex intervention to increase informed decision-making for prostate cancer screening among African-American men in church settings. We recruited 262 men in 18 churches randomized to the two intervention approaches. Trained and certified lay peer community health advisors in each church led a series of four men's health workshops on informed decision-making for prostate cancer screening. African-American male workshop participants completed baseline, post-workshop, and 12-month follow-up surveys. Contrary to our expectations, including women in the workshops did not result in increased intervention efficacy for the informed decision-making outcomes as both groups showed significant improvement over time in several study outcomes including stage of decision-making for prostate cancer screening, preference for role in decision-making, prostate cancer knowledge, and self-reports of prostate specific antigen testing. Finally, men who attended multiple workshops had better informed decision-making outcomes on several indicators. The current findings suggest mixed results from including women in this men's health educational intervention. Future work should consider optimal ways of providing family support for African-American men's health promotion.

Raising Public Awareness of Clinical Trials: Development of Messages for a National Health Communication Campaign.

Clinical trials are essential for developing new and effective treatments and improving patient quality of life; however, many trials cannot answer their primary research questions because they fall short of their recruitment goals. This article reports the results of formative research conducted in two populations, the public and primary care physicians, to identify messages that may raise awareness and increase interest in clinical trials and be used in a national communication campaign. Results suggested that participants were primarily motivated to participate in clinical trials out of a self-interest to help themselves first. Messages illustrated that current treatments were tested via clinical trials, helped normalize trials as routine practices, and reduced concerns over trying something new first. Participants wanted messages that portray trials as state-of-the-art choices that offer some hope, show people like themselves, and are described in a clear, concise manner with actionable steps for them to take. The study revealed some differences in message salience, with healthy audiences exhibiting lower levels of interest. Our results suggest that targeted messages are needed, and that communication with primary health-care providers is an important and necessary component in raising patient awareness of the importance of clinical trials.

A Randomized Controlled Study Comparing the National Cancer Institute's Original and Revised Consent Form Templates.

Since 1998, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has mandated that researchers use its consent form template in developing consent forms for their NCI-funded clinical trials. The template was substantially revised in 2013 to aid in the development of simpler, more concise consent forms. The NCI conducted a randomized controlled trial with cancer survivors (N = 153) to assess the revised template's effect on individuals' knowledge, satisfaction, clarity, and likelihood of joining a trial in the future. We found that the revised template resulted in equally high knowledge and satisfaction scores as the original template, but with fewer words and pages. The likelihood that an individual would participate in a trial diminished after he or she reviewed either the original or revised consent form, yet having knowledge about trials before reviewing the consent forms resulted in increased satisfaction. To ensure an informed decision-making process, we recommend using the revised NCI consent form template along with using educational interventions aimed at increasing the understanding potential participants have of a trial before they receive a consent form.

Feasibility and acceptability of SMS text messaging in a prostate cancer educational intervention for African American men.

African Americans' greater access to mobile phones makes short messaging service technology a promising complement to health promotion interventions. Short messaging service text messages were added to the Men's Prostate Awareness Church Training project, a men's health intervention for African American men. We report on the feasibility and acceptability of the use of short messaging service text messages in the intervention. Short messaging service text messages served as (1) workshop reminders; (2) post-workshop message reinforcement; (3) spiritual/motivational messages; and (4) participant retention. At workshop 4, over 65 percent of participants wished to continue receiving the messages. While there was an increase in recall over time, more than one-third of the participants did not recall receiving the 53 text messages. However, recall was considerably greater among men who attended the Men's Prostate Awareness Church Training workshops. Overall, the inclusion of text messages in health promotion interventions targeting mature African American men was found to be feasible and acceptable.

Informed Decision-Making and Satisfaction with a Church-Based Men's Health Workshop Series for African-American Men: Men-Only vs. Mixed-Gender Format.

Prostate cancer incidence and mortality are highest among African-American men, and coupled with the controversy around routine prostate cancer screening, reaching African-American men with interventions to help them make an informed decision about whether or not to be screened is critical. This study compares two approaches to delivering a church-based peer community health advisor intervention consisting of a series of four men's health workshops on informed decision-making for prostate cancer screening. In the men-only group, male community health advisors teach group workshops consisting only of men. In the health partner group, male-female pairs of community health advisors teach workshops in a mixed-gender format in which enrolled men are asked to invite a significant woman in their lives (e.g., wife/partner, sister, daughter, friend) with them to the workshops. Eighteen African-American churches were randomized to receive one of the two approaches, and 283 eligible men enrolled in the intervention. Main findings suggested that the workshops had an impact on stage of decision-making, and this increased significantly over time in the health partner group only. The intervention was highly rated by men in both groups, and these ratings increased over time, with some study group differences. Within-workshop study group differences favored the health partner group in some instances; however, men in the men-only groups reported greater increases in their ratings of trust in the workshops over time. The health partner intervention strategy appears to be promising for reaching men of color with health information.

Primary care physicians' cancer screening recommendation practices and perceptions of cancer risk of Asian Americans.

Asian Americans experience disproportionate incidence and mortality rates of certain cancers, compared to other racial/ethnic groups. Primary care physicians are a critical source for cancer screening recommendations and play a significant role in increasing cancer screening of their patients. This study assessed primary care physicians' perceptions of cancer risk in Asians and screening recommendation practices. Primary care physicians practicing in New Jersey and New York City (n=100) completed a 30-question survey on medical practice characteristics, Asian patient communication, cancer screening guidelines, and Asian cancer risk. Liver cancer and stomach cancer were perceived as higher cancer risks among Asian Americans than among the general population, and breast and prostate cancer were perceived as lower risks. Physicians are integral public health liaisons who can be both influential and resourceful toward educating Asian Americans about specific cancer awareness and screening information.

Development of the men's prostate awareness church training: church-based workshops for African American men.

This article describes the development of a spiritually based intervention to increase informed decision making for prostate cancer screening through African American churches. The intervention used spiritually themed health messages, incorporated women as supportive health partners, and included a health information technology component. The Men's Prostate Awareness Church Training Project followed a community-based participatory research process to develop educational materials, and training for 40 community health advisors to implement the 4-part prostate health workshop series that will be implemented in 20 churches. Implications are discussed for designing culturally relevant interventions to reduce prostate cancer disparities impacting African American men.

Assessing the need for a standardized cancer HUman Biobank (caHUB): findings from a national survey with cancer researchers.

BACKGROUND: Before developing a national standardized cancer HUman Biobank (caHUB), the National Cancer Institute sought feedback from the cancer research community. METHODS: NCI conducted an online survey (N = 727) about current biospecimen needs and reactions to creating a national resource cancer researchers and others. RESULTS: Most (56%) participants obtained biospecimens within their own institutions, and 63% wanted more information about their biospecimens. Large proportions reported difficulty obtaining biospecimens of adequate numbers (39%) and quality (47%). Low-quality biospecimens resulted in 60% questioning their findings and 81% limiting the scope of their work. Nine in every 10 (91.3%) respondents reacted positively to the idea of a national biospecimen resource, with 62% reporting that they would obtain biospecimens from it and 53% reporting that they would be willing to contribute biospecimens to it. CONCLUSIONS: Initial reactions to caHUB were positive and seen as a feasible option to addressing respondents' research challenges. National Cancer Institute will need to address several concerns to assure its adoption, including standardization and sustainability.

Assessing the impact of user-centered research on a clinical trial eHealth tool via counterbalanced research design.

OBJECTIVE: Informatics applications have the potential to improve participation in clinical trials, but their design must be based on user-centered research. This research used a fully counterbalanced experimental design to investigate the effect of changes made to the original version of a website, http://BreastCancerTrials.org/, and confirm that the revised version addressed and reinforced patients' needs and expectations. DESIGN: Participants included women who had received a breast cancer diagnosis within the last 5 years (N=77). They were randomized into two groups: one group used and reviewed the original version first followed by the redesigned version, and the other group used and reviewed them in reverse order. MEASUREMENTS: The study used both quantitative and qualitative measures. During use, participants' click paths and general reactions were observed. After use, participants were asked to answer survey items and open-ended questions to indicate their reactions and which version they preferred and met their needs and expectations better. RESULTS: Overall, the revised version of the site was preferred and perceived to be clearer, easier to navigate, more trustworthy and credible, and more private and safe overall. However, users who viewed the original version last had similar attitudes toward both versions. CONCLUSION: By applying research findings to the redesign of a website for clinical trial searching, it was possible to re-engineer the interface to better support patients' decisions to participate in clinical trials. The mechanisms of action in this case appeared to revolve around creating an environment that supported a sense of personal control and decisional autonomy.

Self-medication with antibiotics for the treatment of menstrual symptoms in Southwest Nigeria: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Self-medication with antibiotics is an important factor contributing to the development of bacterial antibiotic resistance. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of self-medication with antibiotics for the treatment of menstrual symptoms among university women in Southwest Nigeria. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was administered to female undergraduate and graduate students (n = 706) at four universities in Southwest Nigeria in 2008. The universities were selected by convenience and the study samples within each university were randomly selected cluster samples. The survey was self-administered and included questions pertaining to menstrual symptoms, analgesic and antibiotic use patterns, and demographics. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression. RESULTS: The response rate was 95.4%. Eighty-six percent (95% CI: 83-88%) of participants experienced menstrual symptoms, and 39% (95% CI: 36-43%) reported using analgesics to treat them. Overall, 24% (95% CI: 21-27%) of participants reported self-medicated use of antibiotics to treat the following menstrual symptoms: cramps, bloating, heavy bleeding, headaches, pimples/acne, moodiness, tender breasts, backache, joint and muscle pain. Factors associated with this usage were: lower levels of education (Odds Ratio (OR): 2.8, 95% CI: 1.1-7.1, p-value: 0.03); non-science major (OR: 1.58, 95% CI: 1.03-2.50, p-value: 0.04); usage of analgesics (OR: 3.17, 95% CI: 2.07-4.86, p-value: <0.001); and mild to extreme heavy bleeding (OR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.01-2.67, p-value: 0.05) and pimples/acne (OR: 1.57, 95% CI: 0.98-2.54, p-value: 0.06). Ampicillin, tetracycline, ciprofloxacin and metronidazole were used to treat the most symptoms. Doctors or nurses (6%, 95% CI: 4-7%), friends (6%, 95% CI: 4-7%) and family members (7%, 95% CI: 5-8%) were most likely to recommend the use of antibiotics for menstrual symptoms, while these drugs were most often obtained from local chemists or pharmacists (10.2%, 95% CI: 8-12%). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first formal study to report that approximately 1 out of 4 university women surveyed in Southwest Nigeria self-medicate with antibiotics to treat menstrual symptoms. This practice could provide monthly, low-dose exposures to antibiotics among users. Further studies are necessary to evaluate the impacts of self-medication on student health.

Assets, challenges, and the potential of technology for nutrition education in rural communities.

OBJECTIVE: To examine assets of and challenges to getting adequate nutrition and physical activity among low-income rural residents, and the potential for technology to provide health education. METHODS: Environmental scans and community stakeholder interviews were conducted in 5 rural counties in Maryland. During environmental scans, stakeholders guided tours around each county to explore community services and resources for nutrition, physical activity and technology. In-depth interviews with stakeholders (n=58) focused on nutrition, physical activity, and technology issues. RESULTS: Low-income residents both benefit from and face challenges in rural settings. Besides attitude and knowledge barriers, lack of affordable resources and public transportation contributed to inattention to nutrition and physical activity. Stakeholders' reactions to a proposed Internet-based intervention were mostly favorable, but questions emerged about providing computers and Internet to individual families. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Internet-based education may be a viable option to help low-income rural residents overcome barriers to nutrition and physical activity.

The development of a theory-based instrument to evaluate the effectiveness of continuing medical education.

PURPOSE: To determine the psychometric properties of a theoretically based continuing medical education (CME) evaluation instrument examining attitudinal determinants of physicians' changes in medical practices after a CME intervention. The instrument's scales represented constructs from the theory of planned behavior. METHOD: The authors based the template instrument on educational objectives of the CME intervention and adapted it to the clinical domain of preoperative breast cancer therapy. Development of the initial survey involved cognitive testing, pilot tests, and expert reviews. The authors asked 269 clinicians to complete the 35-item instrument before the CME intervention. Factor analysis and item analysis guided the development of the final six subscales: positive behavioral beliefs, negative behavioral beliefs, attitude toward the behavior, perceived behavior control (self-efficacy), subjective norms, and behavioral intention. RESULTS: Cognitive testing and pilot tests ensured the accuracy and clarity of the language and a reasonable survey length. Of the 269 clinicians, 168 (134 physicians) responded. Scales clustered according to the theoretical constructs. Items not loading in any subscales were eliminated. The final 25 items loaded on six subscales with loadings >0.54. Reliability for the subscales ranged from 0.73 to 0.93 (good for the scale development stage). The authors revised the instrument template and protocol after this initial study to increase the possibility of use in future CME evaluations. CONCLUSIONS: The levels of content and construct validity and reliability of the CME evaluation instrument are acceptable for evaluation of CME activities targeting physicians. Instruments adapted from this template could potentially evaluate future CME activities.

Rural eHealth nutrition education for limited-income families: an iterative and user-centered design approach.

BACKGROUND: Adult women living in rural areas have high rates of obesity. Although rural populations have been deemed hard to reach, Internet-based programming is becoming a viable strategy as rural Internet access increases. However, when people are able to get online, they may not find information designed for them and their needs, especially harder to reach populations. This results in a "content gap" for many users. OBJECTIVE: User-centered design is a methodology that can be used to create appropriate online materials. This research was conducted to apply a user-centered approach to the design and development of a health promotion website for low-income mothers living in rural Maryland. METHODS: Three iterative rounds of concept testing were conducted to (1) identify the name and content needs of the site and assess concerns about registering on a health-related website; (2) determine the tone and look of the website and confirm content and functionality; and (3) determine usability and acceptability. The first two rounds involved focus group and small group discussions, and the third round involved usability testing with individual women as they used the prototype system. RESULTS: The formative research revealed that women with limited incomes were enthusiastic about a website providing nutrition and physical activity information targeted to their incomes and tailored to their personal goals and needs. Other priority content areas identified were budgeting, local resources and information, and content that could be used with their children. Women were able to use the prototype system effectively. CONCLUSIONS: This research demonstrated that user-centered design strategies can help close the "content gap" for at-risk audiences.

Using the internet for health-related activities: findings from a national probability sample.

BACKGROUND: eHealth tools on the Internet have the potential to help people manage their health and health care. However, little is known about the distribution and use of different kinds of eHealth tools across the population or within population subgroups. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence and predictors of participation in specific online health-related activities. METHODS: A secondary data analysis of the National Cancer Institute's Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 2005 was conducted to study three online behaviors among Internet users (n = 3244): searching for health information for oneself, participating in a support group for those with similar health or medical conditions, and purchasing medicine or vitamins. RESULTS: A total of 58% of Internet users reported searching for health information for themselves, 3.8% used online support groups, and 12.8% bought medicine or vitamins online in the past year. Multivariate analysis found that those seeking health information were more likely to be women (OR = 2.23, 95% CI = 1.60, 3.09), have cable or satellite Internet connections (OR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.22, 2.45) or DSL connections (OR = 1.94, 95% CI = 1.36, 2.76), have Internet access from work (OR = 2.43, 95% CI = 1.27, 4.67) or from home and work (OR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.31, 2.30), and report more hours of weekday Internet use (OR = 4.12, 95% CI = 2.41, 7.07). Those with a high school education or less (OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.31, 0.63) and those with some college (OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.49, 0.89) were less likely to search for health information. Online support groups were more likely to be used by those with "fair" health (OR = 3.28, 95% CI = 1.21, 8.92) and "poor" health (OR = 5.98, 95% CI = 1.49, 24.07) and those with lower incomes (OR = 2.64, 95% CI = 1.09, 6.41) and less likely to be used by those with Internet access both at home and work (OR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.35, 0.90). Those who were age 35-49 (OR = 2.16, 95% CI = 1.43, 3.26), age 50-64 (OR = 2.44, 95% CI = 1.53, 3.89), and age 65-74 (OR = 2.18, 95% CI = 1.30, 3.67) and those who were married (OR = 1.93, 95% CI = 1.13, 3.30) were more likely to purchase medicine or vitamins online. CONCLUSIONS: The Internet was most widely used as a health information resource, with less participation in the purchase of medicine and vitamins and in online support groups. Results suggest that modifying survey questions to better capture forms of online support and medications purchased could provide greater understanding of the nature of participation in these activities.

Benefits, barriers, and cues to action of yoga practice: a focus group approach.

OBJECTIVES: To explore perceived benefits, barriers, and cues to action of yoga practice among adults. METHODS: Focus groups were conducted with persons who had never practiced yoga, practitioners of one year or less, and practitioners for more than one year. The Health Belief Model was the theoretical foundation of inquiry. RESULTS: All participants acknowledged a variety of benefits of yoga. Barriers outweighed benefits among persons who had never practiced despite knowledge of benefits. Positive experiences with yoga and yoga instructors facilitated practice. CONCLUSIONS: Newly identified benefits and barriers indicate the need for quantitative research and behavioral trials.

Using the Internet to search for cancer clinical trials: a comparative audit of clinical trial search tools.

Advancing the clinical trial research process to improve cancer treatment necessitates helping people with cancer identify and enroll in studies, and researchers are using the power of the Internet to facilitate this process. This study used a content analysis of online cancer clinical trial search tools to understand what people with cancer might encounter. The content analysis revealed that clinical trial search tools were easy to identify using a popular search engine, but their functionality and content varied greatly. Most required that users be fairly knowledgeable about their medical condition and sophisticated in their web navigation skills. The ability to search by a specific health condition or type of cancer was the most common search strategy. The more complex tools required that users input detailed information about their personal medical history and have knowledge of specific clinical trial terminology. Search tools, however, only occasionally advised users to consult their doctors regarding clinical trial decision-making. This, along with the complexity of the tools suggests that online search tools may not adequately facilitate the clinical trial recruitment process. Findings from this analysis can be used as a framework from which to systematically examine actual consumer experience with online clinical trial search tools.

Developing a questionnaire to measure perceived attributes of eHealth innovations.

OBJECTIVE: To design a valid and reliable questionnaire to assess perceived attributes of technology-based health education innovations. METHODS: College students in 12 personal health courses reviewed a prototype eHealth intervention using a 30-item instrument based upon diffusion theory's perceived attributes of an innovation. RESULTS: Principal components analysis found 5 factors accounted for 44.4% of the variance: 29.0% (relative advantage), 9.6% (simplicity), 6.5% (trialability), 5.0% (observability), and 4.4% (translatability). Internal consistency reliability ranged from .66 to .91 for the 5 factors. CONCLUSION: The instrument can help eHealth developers determine and improve the adoption potential of their applications throughout the development cycle.

Assessment of the nutrition and physical activity education needs of low-income, rural mothers: can technology play a role?

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of low-income, rural mothers regarding their need for nutrition and physical activity education and the role of technology in addressing those needs. Quantitative and qualitative research was combined to examine the nature and scope of the issues faced by this target population. Women who were currently receiving food stamps and had children in nursery school to eighth grade were recruited through a state database to participate in a telephone survey (N = 146) and focus groups (N = 56). Low-income, rural mothers were aware of and practiced many health behaviors related to nutrition and physical activity, but they faced additional barriers due to their income level, rural place of residence, and having children. They reported controlling the fat content in the food they cooked and integrating fruits and vegetables but showed less interest in increasing fiber consumption. They reported knowing little about physical activity recommendations, and their reported activity patterns were likely inflated because of seeing housework and child care as exercise. To stretch their food budget, the majority reported practicing typical shopping and budgeting skills, and many reported skills particularly useful in rural areas: hunting, fishing, and canning. Over two-thirds of the survey respondents reported computer access and previous Internet use, and most of those not yet online intended to use the Internet in the future. Those working in rural communities need to consider technology as a way to reach traditionally underserved populations like low-income mothers.

User-centered research on breast cancer patient needs and preferences of an Internet-based clinical trial matching system.

BACKGROUND: Internet-based clinical trial matching systems have the potential to streamline the search process for women with breast cancer seeking alternative treatments. A prototype system was developed to leverage the capabilities of a personal health record system for the purpose of identifying clinical trials. OBJECTIVE: This study examines how breast cancer patients perceive and interact with a preliminary version of an Internet-based clinical trial matching system, while taking into account the demands of diagnosis and treatment decision making. METHODS: Breast cancer patients participated in small group discussions and interacted with the prototype website in a two-phase qualitative research process. The first phase explored the experience of breast cancer patients (n = 8) with treatment decision making, initial responses to the idea of Internet-based clinical trial matching systems, and reactions to the prototype site. In the second phase, a different set of breast cancer patients (n = 7) reviewed revised website content and presentation and participated in a usability test in which they registered on the system and completed a personal health record to set up the matching process. RESULTS: Participants were initially skeptical of the prototype system because it emphasized registration, had a complicated registration process, and asked for complex medical information. Changing content and attending to usability guidelines improved the experience for women in the second phase of the research and enabled the identification of functionality and content issues, such as lack of clear information and directions on how to use the system. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that women felt favorably about the idea of using the Internet to search for clinical trials but that such a system needed to meet their expectations for credibility and privacy and be sensitive to their situation. Developers can meet these expectations by conforming to established usability guidelines and testing improvements with breast cancer patients. Future research is needed to verify these findings and to continue to improve systems of this nature.

A systematic review of evaluation in formal continuing medical education.

INTRODUCTION: Physicians spend a considerable amount of time in Continuing Medical Education (CME) to maintain their medical licenses. CME evaluation studies vary greatly in evaluation methods, levels of evaluation, and length of follow-up. Standards for CME evaluation are needed to enable comparison among different studies and to detect factors influencing CME evaluation. METHODS: A review of the CME evaluation literature was conducted on primary research studies published from January 2000 to January 2006. Studies assessing only satisfaction with CME were excluded, as were studies where fewer than 50% of the participants were practicing physicians. Thirty-two studies were included in the analyses. Determinations were made about evaluation methods, outcome measures, and follow-up assessment. RESULTS: Only 2 of 32 reviewed studies addressed all evaluation levels: physician changes in knowledge and attitudes (level 2), practices (level 3), and improved patient health status (level 4). None of the studies using self-developed instruments (n = 10) provided reliability and validity information. Only 6 studies used validated scales. Twenty studies had a follow-up period of 6 months or less, and 11 had a follow-up period between 1 and 2 years. DISCUSSION: A gold standard for evaluating the effectiveness of CME would include assessment of all 4 levels of evaluation. A valid, reliable, and adaptable CME evaluation questionnaire addressing variables in the second level is needed to allow comparison of effectiveness across CME interventions. A minimum 1-year postintervention follow-up period may also be indicated to investigate the sustainability of intervention outcomes.