From participation to diagnostic assessment: A systematic scoping review of the role of the primary healthcare sector in the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program

Carol A. Holden, Oliver Frank, Joanna Cruso, Deborah Turnbull, Richard L. Reed, Caroline L. Miller, Ian Olver

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)
37 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Primary health care (PHC) plays a vital support role in organised colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programs by encouraging patient participation and ensuring timely referral for diagnostic assessment follow up. A systematic scoping review of the current evidence was conducted to inform strategies that better engage the PHC sector in organised CRC screening programs. Articles published from 2005 to November 2019 were searched across five databases. Evidence was synthesised and interventions that specifically require PHC involvement were mapped to stages of the CRC screening pathway. Fifty-seven unique studies were identified in which patient, provider and system-level interventions align with defined stages of the CRC screening pathway: Namely, identifying/reminding patients who have not responded to CRC screening (non-adherence) (n = 46) and follow up of a positive screen referral (n = 11). Self-management support initiatives (patient level) and improvement initiatives (system level) demonstrate consistent benefits along the CRC screening pathway. Interventions evaluated as part of a quality-improvement process tended to report effectiveness; however, the variation in reporting makes it difficult to determine which elements contributed to the overall study outcomes. To maximise the benefits of population-based screening programs, better integration into existing primary care services can be achieved through targeting preventive and quality care interventions along the entire screening pathway.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)191-206
Number of pages16
JournalAustralian Journal of Primary Health
Volume26
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Jun 2020

Bibliographical note

Journal compilation © La Trobe University 2020 Open Access CC BY-NC-ND

Keywords

  • preventive medicine
  • quality of health care
  • secondary prevention

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'From participation to diagnostic assessment: A systematic scoping review of the role of the primary healthcare sector in the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this