The study seeks to determine the extent to which breast cancer screening can be increased among low income and elderly African-American women living in the Nashville area (more specificially, around the East Nashville Family Health Care Group Practice-ENC), using a combination of culturally appropriate strategic approaches that are implemented through a coordinated community effort.
The main goal is to develop, implement, and evaluate a culturally-sensitive multi-faceted pilot program that seeks to improve breast cancer screening knowledge (k), attitudes (A), and practices (P) in a high risk population of poor and elderly African American women.
The project will involve a collaborative venture between Meharry's Cancer Control Research Unit, The East Nashville Family Health Care Group, the Community Coalition for Minority Health, the Middle Tennessee Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Coalition, and other selected organizations and individuals in the East Nashville Community who have an interest in breast cancer prevention and control. The study has three phases: Phase I: Planning, 1-6 months; Phase 2: Implementaton, 7-22 months; and Phase 3: Evaluation, 9-24 months.
Some activities are: the development of an intervention program: cluster profiling methodology, b) social marketing methodology, and c) stages of change methodology. Health eduators will be trained for the project.
Learning Objectives: 1) Increase breast cancer knowledge (knowledge) in the targeted risk groups by 20% above baseline; 2)improve attitudes toward cancer screening (Attitudes) by at least 1 standard deviation above baseline values; 3) increase the number of mammograms completed (Practices) among the target risk groups by 20% above baseline rates; and 4) improve the rate of early detection in the targeted risk groups by 20% above baseline levels.
Keywords: Breast Cancer Screening, Aging
Awards: best paper on "older women and public health" - Honorable MentionPresenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Meharry Medical College
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.