Using a lay cancer screening navigator to increase colorectal cancer screening rates

Preventive care is often not performed during the ambulatory office visit due to the acute nature of the visit. One possible strategy is the use of a lay cancer screening navigator using the lay health worker model.

A training program for the lay cancer screening navigator and a patient registry for colorectal cancer screening was developed. The RE-AIM framework was used to evaluate the intervention. Descriptive statistics were generated for patient demographics.

Reach: The lay cancer screening navigator contacted 91.9% of eligible patients. Effectiveness: At baseline, 28.6% of patients were current on their colorectal cancer screening, 40.5% at 6 months, and 42.2% at 12 months. Adoption: Patients contacted all reported being receptive to the intervention.

Of the 368 fecal immunochemical test kits mailed, 151 were returned (41.0%), and 26 (17.2%) were positive. Maintenance: The percentage of patients who were current between 6 months and at 12 months were not significantly different.

This study demonstrates that the use of a lay cancer screening navigator to increase the rate of colorectal cancer screening is a viable strategy.