Screening HMO women overdue for both mammograms and pap tests.
BACKGROUND
Regular screening has the potential to reduce breast and cervical cancer mortality, but despite health plan programs to encourage screening, many women remain unscreened. Tailored communications have been identified as a promising approach to promote mammography and Pap test screening.


METHODS
The study used a four-group randomized design to compare with Usual Care the separate and combined effects of two tailored, motivational interventions to increase screening-a clinical office In-reach intervention and a sequential letter/telephone Outreach intervention. Subjects were 510 female HMO members ages 52-69 who had had no mammogram in the past 2 years and no Pap smear in the past 3 years. Primary outcomes were the percentage of women in each condition who received a mammogram, a Pap smear, or both screening tests during the 14-month study period.


RESULTS
Thirty-two percent of the Combined group, 39% of the Outreach group, and 26% of the In-reach group obtained both services versus 19% of Usual Care participants. Overall, compared with Usual Care, both Outreach (P = 0.006) and Combined (P = 0.05) screened significantly more women. For subjects ages 65-69, Outreach rates were lower than those of Usual Care.


CONCLUSIONS
A tailored letter-telephone Outreach appears to be more effective at screening women ages 52-64 than a tailored office-based intervention, in large part because most In-reach women did not have clinic visits at which to receive the intervention.
Valanis
Barbara G
BG
Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research, Portland, Oregon 97227, USA. Barbara.Valanis@KPCHR.org
Glasgow
Russell E
RE
Mullooly
John
J
Vogt
Thomas M
TM
Whitlock
Evelyn P
EP
Boles
Shawn M
SM
Smith
K Sabina
KS
Kimes
Teresa M
TM
D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000517:prevention & control; D003159:Community-Institutional Relations; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D006279:Health Maintenance Organizations / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008327:Mammography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D009922:Oregon; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017010:Reminder Systems; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000517:prevention & control; D014626:Vaginal Smears / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014861:Washington; D016387:Women's Health