Stakeholder Perspectives on Colonoscopy Navigation and Colorectal Cancer Screening Inequities.

Black adults complete colonoscopies at lower rates than other groups despite increased colorectal cancer risk. Patient navigation represents a strategy to address the varied factors that influence colonoscopy completion, but few reports describe how navigation reduces racial disparities in colorectal cancer screening rates. The purpose of this study was to understand how a statewide colonoscopy navigation program addressed the challenges faced by low-income Black adults attempting to complete screening colonoscopy. A qualitative case study analysis was conducted at a participating clinical site of a statewide colonoscopy navigation program. Clinical observations, document reviews, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with patients, patient navigators, and clinical staff. Patient participants were recruited to ensure maximum variation related to gender and colonoscopy completion. Thematic coding allowed researchers to examine experiences, perceptions, and emotions related to patient navigation. In total, 31 interviews were completed between October 2014 and February 2015. Patients and patient navigators reported logistical, psychosocial, and knowledge-related barriers to colonoscopy completion. Clinical staff reports focused mostly on logistical barriers. Benefits of patient navigation also varied by participant type with clinical staff revealing positive effects on the clinic's relationships with referring specialty practices. Patient navigators address barriers that are important to patients, but often unseen by clinical staff/providers. New information about the benefits different stakeholders derive from this strategy was revealed. Together these findings provide insight into the processes associated with this strategy and novel information about the appeal of patient navigation to various stakeholders.

Examining Breast Cancer Screening Behavior Among Southern Black Women After the 2009 US Preventive Services Task Force Mammography Guideline Revisions.

Updated United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) and American Cancer Society mammography screening recommendations push for increased age of initiation and lengthened breast cancer screening intervals. These changes have implications for the reduction of breast cancer mortality in Black women. The purpose of this study was to examine breast cancer screening behavior in a cohort of Southern Black women after the release of the 2009 USPSTF recommendations. Surveys assessing cancer screening information were collected from members of Black churches between 2006 and 2013. The sample was restricted to women aged 40 to 74 years, who did not report a breast cancer diagnosis, or a recent diagnostic mammogram (n = 789). Percentages of women ever completing a mammogram (age 40-49) and annual mammography (age 50-74) in 2006-2009 and 2010-2013 were compared using chi-square statistics. Logistic regression models were fit to determine the predictors of adherence to pre-2010 screening guidelines. No significant changes in mammography rates were found for women in the 40-49 age group (X2 = 0.42, p = 0.52) nor for those in the 50-74 age group (X2 = 0.67, p = 0.41). Completing an annual clinical breast exam was a significant predictor of adherence to pre-2010 screening guidelines for both age groups (OR 19.86 and OR 33.27 respectively) and participation in education sessions (OR 4.26). Stability in mammography behavior may be a result of PCP's advice, or community activities grounded pre-2010 screening recommendations. More research is needed to understand how clinical interactions and community-based efforts shape Black women's screening knowledge and practices.

Development of a Clinical-Academic-Community Collaboration to Improve Health Literacy.

Limited health literacy is associated with poor patient health outcomes and increased hospitalization rates. Patient-provider communication plays an important role in patient health literacy and the understanding of medical terminology. This study demonstrates how a collaboration between clinical, academic, and community partners was instrumental in the design and implementation of a clinic readiness assessment and a clinic-based pilot intervention to encourage patient-provider communication and improve patient health literacy. A state hospital association, academic research team, and community adult literacy center director collaborated to develop a 60-item clinic readiness assessment and an evidence-informed pilot intervention. The clinic readiness assessment captured clinics' motivation and capacity for pilot implementation and providers' current communication strategies. The intervention centered around AskMe3™ educational materials and involved 2 patient visits (initial and follow-up visits). Data collection instruments for the intervention were administered verbally and included questions about patient demographics and communication needs, and a single-item health literacy measure. Descriptive statistics (frequencies/percentages) were used to analyze results from the clinic readiness assessment and pilot intervention. Establishment of the partnership, and collaborative, iterative development of the clinic readiness assessment and pilot intervention are described. This pilot project resulted in important lessons learned which led to critical modifications that will inform future expansion of the intervention. Collaboration between healthcare leaders, researchers, and community partners is recommended for developing clinic-based health literacy initiatives.

Cervical cancer screening behaviors and proximity to federally qualified health centers in South Carolina.

INTRODUCTION: Lack of participation in cervical cancer screening in underserved populations has been attributed to access to care, particularly among women in rural areas. Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) were created to address this need in medically underserved populations. This study observed proximity to three health centers in relation to cervical cancer screening rates in South Carolina. METHODS: Data were obtained from FQHC patient visits (from 3 centers) between 2007-2010 and were limited to women eligible for cervical cancer screening (n = 24,393). ArcGIS was used to geocode patients addresses and FQHC locations, and distance was calculated. Modified Poisson regression was used to estimate relative risk of obtaining cervical cancer screening within one yearor ever, stratified by residential area. RESULTS: Findings differed markedly by center and urban/rural status. At two health clinics, rural residents living the furthest away from the clinic (∼9 miles difference between quartile 4 and quartile 1) were more likely to be ever screened (RRs = 1.05 and 1.03, p-values < 0.05), while urban residents living the furthest away were less likely to be ever screened (RR = 0.85, p-value < 0.05). At the third center, only urban residents living the furthest away were more likely to be ever screened (RR = 1.02, p-value < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Increased travel distance significantly increased the likelihood of cervical cancer screening at two FQHC sites while significantly decreasing the likelihood of screening at the 3rd site. These findings underscore the importance of contextual and environmental factors that impact use of cervical cancer screening services.

Using photovoice as a tool for community engagement to assess the environment and explore environmental health disparities.

Photovoice was used as a participatory research method to document perceived local environmental hazards, pollution sources, and potential impact on health among community members to address environmental health disparities. A convenience sample of 16 adults in Orangeburg, South Carolina participated in Photovoice. Photos depicted positive and negative implications of the environment across seven themes: recreation and leisure; food access; hazards and pollution; health, human, and social services; economic issues; beautification; and accommodation and accessibility. Positive and negative photos demonstrated a high level of interest among community members in considering how the environment influences health and health disparities.

The Southeastern U.S. Collaborative Center of Excellence in the Elimination of Disparities (SUCCEED): reducing breast and cervical cancer disparities for African American women.

This supplement highlights the efforts of Morehouse School of Medicine's Prevention Research Center and its partners to reduce the disparities experienced by African American women for breast and cervical cancer in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. The project (entitled the Southeastern U.S. Collaborative CEED, or SUCCEED) is supported by a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) grant to establish a Center of Excellence in the Elimination of Disparities (CEED). This introductory paper provides an overview describing the project's goals and core components and closes by introducing the adjoining papers that describe in more detail these components. The program components for SUCCEED include providing training and technical assistance for implementing evidence-based interventions for breast and cervical cancer; supporting capacity-building and sustainability efforts for community-based organizations; promoting the establishment of new empowered community coalitions and providing advocacy training to cancer advocates in order to affect health systems and policies.