Mammography status using patient self-reports and computerized radiology database.

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Public Health
• Radiology

Background:

• Accurate tracking of cancer screening is crucial for patient care.
• Discrepancies between patient self-reports and medical records can impact healthcare decisions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare self-reported mammography use with hospital database records in a low-income population.
• To assess concordance between patient recall and electronic health data for mammography screening.

Main Methods:

• Survey administered to age-eligible women at an inner-city public hospital's internal medicine clinic.
• Patient survey responses were cross-referenced with the hospital's radiology database.
• Concordance analysis was performed on self-reported data versus database information.

Main Results:

• High concordance (82%) was found when comparing self-reported history of ever having a mammogram at the hospital.
• Lower concordance (58%) was observed when comparing self-reported timing of the last mammogram with database records.
• Significant disagreements highlight potential issues in both patient recall and data accuracy.

Conclusions:

• Patient self-reports and hospital databases may not always align for mammography history.
• Potential inaccuracies in the database warrant careful review of individual patient histories.
• Healthcare providers should verify a woman's complete mammography experience before making clinical recommendations.