Interim Assessment of a Community Intervention To Improve Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening among Korean American Women

Abstract

Breast and cervical cancer screening practices are suboptimal among Korean American women. A community intervention program was launched in 1996 to improve breast and cervical cancer screening among Korean American women in Alameda County, California. After 18 months, interim program assessment revealed that mammograms improved, but Pap smears, breast self-examinations, and clinical breast examinations did not change significantly. However, results were similar for the control county probably because the program was not implemented fully. Several strategies for improving program implementation are discussed including recommendations for researchers planning community intervention projects.

Culturally tailored interventions of chronic disease targeting Korean Americans: a systematic review

“…Although two articles (Kim and Menon 2009; Kim et al 2010) tested the same intervention program (‘Go Early’), the articles were considered as separate intervention tests because they reported on studies that had different participants, study periods, and designs. However, two intervention articles for promoting a breast and cervical cancer screening program (‘Health is Strength’) were regarded as one study despite the recruitment of different participants during different study periods because the former article was considered as an interim assessment study for the latter article (Moskowitz et al 2007; Wismer et al 2001). Thus, data are presented for 16 unique intervention tests.…”

“…The Cognitive-Social Health Information Processing Model guided a study related to tobacco cessation (Fang et al 2006). Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) guided two studies (Kim et al 2009; Song et al 2010; Kim and Sarna 2004), community-sensitive research principles directed one study (Moskowitz et al 2007; Wismer et al 2001), and the Quality Health Outcome Model guided one study (Sin et al 2005). …”

A Multifaceted Intervention to Increase Cervical Cancer Screening among Underserved Korean Women

“…Studies have shown that women who are unable to speak or read English cannot successfully navigate the healthcare system to schedule their appointments and/or communicate with healthcare professionals (8). However, although Korean women face considerable barriers to screening, few programs have been designed specifically for this population subgroup (12,16).…”

The Sociocultural Context of Breast Cancer Screening Among Korean Immigrant Women

“…For instance, an intervention on cognitive factors, which provided Korean immigrant communities with education and information about breast cancer screening, failed to make a significant improvement in screening rates compared to the control group. 14 Furthermore, an intervention intended to eliminate financial barriers, which provided various sub-Asians, including Koreans, with free mammograms, was not successful in obtaining improved screening rates. 13 Not until Korean immigrant women's perceptions of breast cancer screening are checked into precisely and interpreted accurately will improving the breast cancer screening rate be successful.…”