The reduced breast cancer mortality found in several major studies (Shapiro et al., 1982;Collette et al., 1984;Verbeek et al., 1984;Tabar et al., 1985Tabar et al., , 1989Palli et al., 1986) is the rationale for screening with mammography. In order to justify the continued use of a screening procedure, subjects correctly classified as positive at screening should receive a benefit. However, the magnitude of the reduction in breast cancer resulting from screening has been questioned, and issues regarding adverse effects of breast screening have been raised (Skrabanak, 1985(Skrabanak, , 1988Wright, 1986;Eddy, 1988;Devitt, 1989 (Gram et al., 1989). Fourteen women were ineligible for the present study (two lost to migration before work-up, ten with a new and two with a previous diagnosis of breast cancer). The remaining 179 women with a false positive screening result formed the study group. Questionnaire A questionnaire concerning attitudes toward mammography, anxiety about having breast cancer and a request for a future interview were mailed to the study group six months after the screening mammogram. The questionnaire was also mailed to the following three groups: a random sample of 250 women selected from women with a negative screening result (reference sample), a random sample of 250 women not invited to screening living in the nearby city of Harstad (population sample) and women invited who did not attend (non-attenders, n = 670) (Figure 1). In the study group 89% completed the questionnaire. The corresponding completion rates for the eligible women in the reference group was 84%, among non-attenders 43%, and in the population sample 66%. Women completing the questionnaire although migrated (n = 31, non-attenders) are included in the analysis. The women in the combined comparison groups were within the same age range. InterviewWomen in the study and reference group who had indicated that they would allow an interview were contacted about year after returning their questionnaire. Women who did not show up were mailed a new time for appointment. Those still not responding were approached by telephone and their TROMSO YES

The present study was undertaken to compare the occupational stress, levels of burnout, death anxiety, and the social support of a national sample of 376 hospice and critical care nurses. t tests indicated that critical care nurses reported significantly more occupational stress, showed higher burnout, and experienced more death anxiety than hospice nurses. The two nursing groups differed significantly when the three components of the Maslach Burnout Inventory were compared: hospice nurses reported feeling less emotional exhaustion, utilized the technique of depersonalization less frequently, and experienced a greater sense of personal accomplishment. The two nursing groups did not differ in social support when both the quantity and quality of that construct were examined. Pearson coefficients indicated positive associations between burnout and occupational stress and between burnout and death anxiety, with a negative relationship between burnout and social support.

A mailed questionnaire survey was conducted among the following groups: 179 women who screened false positive at a free mammography screening; a random sample of 250 women who screened negative; 670 nonattenders of the screening; and a random population sample of 250 women who lived in another city and were not invited, but were otherwise comparable. The most frequently reported reason for nonattendance was not having the opportunity. Furthermore, only 18% of the nonattenders reported anxiety about breast cancer compared with 33% of the population sample (P less than .05). Ninety-nine percent of the women who attended indicated a positive attitude toward mammography that had not been adversely affected by screening experiences.

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in perceptions of breast cancer and mammography between black women who wanted a mammogram and those who did not. The subjects were 186 low socioeconomic black women who attended an inner city community health clinic (83% response rate). There were no significant differences on the demographic and background variables between women who did (N = 139) and did not (N = 47) want a mammogram. The knowledge level of both groups regarding breast cancer was poor. Those who desired a mammogram perceived themselves as more susceptible to breast cancer, and considered breast cancer more severe than those who did not want a mammogram. Neither group identified many barriers to obtaining a mammogram. The majority (at least 88 percent of those who wanted a mammogram and at least 55 percent of those who did not) agreed with each of the five benefit items. Eighty-five percent of both groups agreed they would receive a mammogram if their physician told them to do so. The two Health Belief Model components which accounted for the largest percentage of the variance between women who wanted a mammogram and those who did not were perceived benefits (13 percent) and perceived susceptibility (3 percent).

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