A supermarket cardiovascular screening program: analysis of participants' solicitation of follow-up care

We conducted a cardiovascular screening program in 54 supermarkets in the province of Québec, Canada to determine cardiovascular risk factors, including total cholesterol, blood pressure, tobacco use, height, weight, and physical activity levels. A 10-minute debriefing counseling session followed. Of the 3,432 screening participants 18-74 years of age, 2,420 participated in a nutrition study, consisting of answering a brief questionnaire before the screening. Three months after the screening, 1,293 individuals returned the posttest nutrition questionnaire sent to them by mail. We report follow-up care activity for low-risk and high-risk individuals for respondents of the posttest nutrition questionnaire. Overall, 53% of respondents reported seeing a physician within three months after the screening to discuss their blood cholesterol or blood pressure results, and the percentage ranged from 25% for individuals with normal cholesterol (< or = 199 mg/dL) and normal blood pressure (< 140/90 mm Hg) to 83% for individuals with high cholesterol (> or = 240 mg/dL) and high blood pressure (> or = 140/90 mm Hg). Respondents who saw a physician following the screening were more likely to be (1) those on medication at the time of the screening for high blood cholesterol and high blood pressure, (2) older individuals, (3) those found to have high blood cholesterol and high blood pressure values during the screening, (4) women, and (5) individuals with a lower level of education. Seventy-nine percent identified as having high blood cholesterol during the screening reported that their blood cholesterol was remeasured. The majority of high-risk participants and their physicians took appropriate follow-up action.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)