Prevalence and implications of multiple cancer screening needs among Hispanic community health center patients.

Objectives: To examine adherence rates for multiple cancer screening tests, which will inform prevention efforts in community health centers (CHCs).

Methods: We report on the prevalence of screening for multiple cancers (cervical, breast and colorectal) among 43,000 patients who are predominantly Hispanic, in four CHC sites that share an integrated electronic medical record.

Results: Among the 20,057 patients eligible for at least one test, 43% of the population was current on all screening targets; 15,887 additional screening tests were needed among 11,526 individuals.

Conclusions: Expanding use of health information technology in community health centers provides an opportunity to create an electronic infrastructure for addressing multiple screening needs from a patient-centered perspective.