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Current awareness in Canada of clinical practice guidelines for colorectal cancer screening.
- Source :
-
Canadian Journal of Surgery . Apr2004, Vol. 47 Issue 2, p104-108. 5p. 4 Charts. - Publication Year :
- 2004
-
Abstract
- Introduction: The Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care (CTF-PHC) recently revised its screening recommendations for colorectal cancer (CRC). We wished to assess the effect of this change on the screening beliefs and clinical practice of primary care physicians. Methods: We surveyed 160 primary-care physicians, quasi-randomly sampled, in June-July 2001 and again in April-July 2002, 9 months after publication of the guidelines. Descriptive statistics and McNemar χ2 analyses were carried out on data from physicians who responded to both surveys. Results: Of the those sampled, 47% responded to both surveys. After the publication of the CTF-PHC guidelines, the proportion reporting that they recommend CRC screening to their patients at average risk increased from 43% to 60% (p = 0.02). Before publication of the revised guidelines 48% stated that the CTF-PHC did not support screening, compared with 24% afterward (p = 0.01). CTF-PHC guidelines were acknowledged by 30% to be a source of CRC screening information. Around 9 months post-publication, 24% of the physiciansstated their awareness of the revised screening guidelines. The most commonly cited reasons for not recommending CRC screening to average-risk patients were that the evidence is inconclusive and thatCTF-PHC guidelines do not support screening. Conclusions: After publication of the revised CTFPHC guidelines more primary-care physicians reported that they recommend CRC screening to their average-risk patients. The belief that the evidence is inconclusive nevertheless remains a considerable barrier to implementation. To increase the use of screening for CRC, additional strategies are required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0008428X
- Volume :
- 47
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Canadian Journal of Surgery
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 12815237