title: Knowledge and practice of breast cancer screening amongst public health nurses in Singapore.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The study aimed to examine the knowledge and practice of breast cancer screening amongst Public Health nurses who are patient educators.
  
  
  METHODS
  A self-administered questionnaire was sent to all 447 nurses in the Public Health Service to assess their knowledge and practice of breast cancer screening. Response rate was 96.4%. Knowledge scores ranged from 0-17 with one point given to a correct knowledge question, zero for wrong answer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Median knowledge score was nine and 58.3% of nurses scored > or = 9. Statistically significant factors influencing knowledge scores were related to the nursing profession, namely nursing qualifications, current nursing post and current workplace. 76.2% of Nursing Officers/Higher Nursing Officers and 74.5% of midwives had knowledge scores > or = 9 compared with 57.3% of staff nurses and 40.8% of assistant nurses (p < 0.01). 60.1% of nurses who were taught breast-self examination scored > or = 9 (p < 0.05). As for practice, 93.7% of nurses did breast-self-examination, 54.1% had clinical breast examination in the past one year and 50.2% had mammogram done. On multivariate analysis, significant factors affecting practice of clinical breast examination were marital status (Prevalence Rate Ratio 1.94, 95% Confidence Interval 1.20-3.15), doctor's gender (PRR 1.35, CI 1.04-1.75) and those affecting mammogram were age group (PRR 1.78, CI 1.27-2.48), marital status (PRR 1.63, CI 1.03-2.59), history of breast disease (PRR 1.51, CI 1.06-2.16).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The majority of nurses had certain misconceptions in the knowledge of breast cancer and breast cancer screening. A higher proportion of nurses in the Family Health Service had higher knowledge scores than other nurses in the Public Health Service. Most of the nurses did breast-self-examination. Having ever married and the availability of a female doctor influenced the nurses attending clinical breast examination. Nurses who were > or = 50 years old, ever married and those with a positive history of breast disease were more likely to have mammography done.
authors.affiliation: National Healthcare Group Polyclinics, Singapore. Phui_Nah_CHONG@nhgp.com.sg
authors.forename: P N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Chong
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Krishnan
authors.forename: C Y
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: T S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Swah
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods* / Q000451:nursing; D008875:Middle Aged; D011637:Public Health Nursing; D012846:Singapore; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires