Preferred sources of receiving health-related messages among adult females with recent screening mammography

Background. Females are more likely to have higher health literacy (HL) and participate in cancer screening. However, well-documented disparities exist in breast cancer screening rates among minorities and those having lower-income.

Objectives. This study aims to: (1) identify preferred sources of health-related information among adult females, >40 years, completing screening mammography in the previous year; and (2) examine sociodemographics, health indicators, and health-related behaviors associated with preferred sources for health messages.

Methods. Data were collected from 973 females who reported having mammograms in the previous year using a randomized multimodal survey of households in an eight-county region of Texas. Multinomial logistic regression was performed to compare factors associated with participants' preferred source of receiving health-related messages.

Results. Most participants preferred receiving health information from physicians (64.5%), followed by internet (13.4%), mass media (12.5%), and family/friends (9.6%). Relative to those who preferred health information from physicians, participants who were African American (OR=0.60, P=0.006), >65 years (OR=0.24, P=0.001), obese (OR=0.57, P=0.033), and had more chronic conditions (OR=0.69, P=0.003) were significantly less likely to prefer internet-based health messages. Those who were more educated (OR=0.65, P=0.044), obese (OR=0.41, P=0.007), and in urban areas (OR=0.66, P=0.005) were less likely to prefer obtaining health information from mass media.

Conclusion: Although physician-patient communication was preferred, a variety of channels may be needed to disseminate accurate and reliable health messages. Public health educators should consider issues of geography, access, and patient preferences in targeting breast health programs to subgroups with variable HL and access to cancer prevention/control services.