The effects of mailed reminders and tailored messages on mammography screening

A mail campaign to promote mammography screening was tested with 3,887 Medicare recipients in North Dakota who had not had a mammogram in 2 1/2 years. Three types of mailings were compared: (1) a simple reminder message, (2) a reminder accompanied by a persuasive communication emphasizing personal risk, and (3) a reminder accompanied by a message tailored to the participants' chief barrier to having a mammogram. Overall, subsequent mammography rates for women in these conditions did not differ from the rate observed among women who did not receive any mailing. However, post-hoc analyses suggested that women who reported a barrier to having a mammogram were more likely to have a mammogram. Population-wide mail campaigns of the kinds tested here may be generally ineffective for Medicare recipients who are obtaining screenings infrequently. Tailoring messages may be one potentially effective intervention, if investigators can develop ways to increase responses to inquiries about barriers.