Increasing patient/physician communications about colorectal cancer screening in rural primary care practices.

Background: Rural populations as well as less educated people in the United States are less likely to receive colorectal cancer (CRC) screening than people living in urban areas and more educated people.

Methods: We tested a computer tablet, Patient/Provider Communication Assistant (PPCA), which collected data, educated patients, and printed personalized notes to patients and providers encouraging conversation about CRC screening. Mixed model analyses using a prepost quasi-experimental design compared patient results during the comparison and intervention periods in 5 rural primary care practices on provider discussion about CRC screening, provider recommendation, and patient intention to be screened.

Does extended proactive telephone support increase smoking cessation among low-income women using nicotine patches?

Background: It is unclear whether proactive telephone support enhances smoking cessation beyond the provision of nicotine replacement therapy alone.

Methods: We randomly assigned 330 low-income women smokers to receive either free nicotine patches (control condition) or free nicotine patches with up to 16 weeks of proactive telephone support (experimental condition). All participants were assessed by telephone at baseline and at 2 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months post-baseline to determine smoking status.