What to know
The screening policies, procedures, and practices within health facilities focus area includes tools and resources to assess the status of cancer screening, make cancer screening a priority, reduce structural barriers, and use data to identify patients due for screening and opportunities to improve cancer screening rates within a clinical setting or system.
Introduction
This page is part of the Breast Cancer Screening Change Package.
Change concepts are "general notions that are useful for developing more specific strategies for changing a process."1 Change ideas are evidence-based or practice-based "actionable, specific ideas or strategies."1 Each change idea is linked to tools and resources that can be used or adapted to improve cancer screening.
Note: See a list of acronyms used in this change package.
Select a change concept:
- Make cancer screening a priority.
- Implement population management strategies for all eligible patients.
- Establish standard operating procedures for screening.
- Use risk assessment tools and follow-up.
- Practice patient education, communication, and shared decision making.
- Implement patient and provider reminder systems.
- Reduce structural barriers in the health care setting.
Change concept: Make cancer screening a priority.
- HRSA — UDS Clinical Quality Measures 2022, pages 2–3
- The Primary Care Coalition of Montgomery County — Breast Healthcare Improvement in the Safety-Net: Change Package Rapid Innovation to Improve Outcomes, pages 12–15
Change concept: Implement population management strategies for all eligible patients.
- President's Cancer Panel — Closing Gaps in Cancer Screening: Connecting People, Communities, and Systems to Improve Equity and Access, pages iii and 18–21
- The Community Guide — Cancer Screening: Interventions Engaging Community Health Workers – Breast Cancer
Change concept: Establish standard operating procedures for screening.
- Smalls TE, Heiney SP, Baliko B, Tavokoli AS, 2019 — Mammography Adherence: Creation of a Process Change Plan to Increase Usage Rates [full text available for purchase]
Change concept: Practice patient education, communication, and shared decision making.
- GW Cancer Center — Guide for Patient Navigators: A Supplement to the Oncology Patient Navigator Training: The Fundamentals, pages 83–88
- Kunneman M, Montori VM, Castaneda-Guarderas A, Hess EP, 2016 — What Is Shared Decision Making? (and What It Is Not)
- ASCO — MammogramB
- NCI — Understanding Breast Changes and Conditions: A Health Guide [information booklet]; also available in SpanishB
- WPSI — Well-Woman ChartB [English and Spanish]
- GW Cancer Center — Health Equity Toolbox: Resources to Foster Cultural Sensitivity and Equitable Care for All
- GW Cancer Center — Practice Patient-Centered Care Posters
- GW Cancer Center — Practice Patient-Centered Care Posters
- ACS — Tips for Getting a MammogramB [English and Spanish]
- CDC — About MammogramsB [English and Spanish]
Change concept: Implement patient and provider reminder systems.
- NIHB — Health Systems Improvement Toolkit: A Guide to Cancer Screenings in Indian Country, pages 15 and 21–24
Change concept: Reduce structural barriers in the health care setting.
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services — Accountable Health Communities Model [social needs screening tool]
- Mobile Healthcare Association — Special Interest Group – Mammography
- BMC and AVON Foundation for Women — The Boston Medical Center Patient Navigation Toolkit 1st ed
- Evidence-Based Cancer Control Programs (EBCCP) — Kukui Ahi (Light the Way): Patient Navigation — Addressing Barriers Worksheet; Implementation Guide
- GW Cancer Center — Guide for Patient Navigators: A Supplement to the Oncology Patient Navigator Training: The Fundamentals
- GW Cancer Center — Together, Equitable, Accessible, Meaningful (TEAM) Training [CEU course, free, registration required]
- NIHB — Health Systems Improvement Toolkit: A Guide to Cancer Screenings in Indian Country, pages 25–26
- Smalls TE, Heiney SP, Baliko B, Tavokoli AS, 2019 — Mammography Adherence: Creation of a Process Change Plan to Increase Usage Rates [full text available for purchase]
- Juckett G, Unger K, 2014 — Appropriate Use of Medical Interpreters
- The Community Guide — Cancer Screening: Reducing Structural Barriers for Clients — Breast Cancer
- BMC and AVON Foundation for Women — The Boston Medical Center Patient Navigation Toolkit 1st ed, pages 5–19
- Evidence-Based Cancer Control Programs (EBCCP) — Kukui Ahi (Light the Way): Patient Navigation — Facility Tour Worksheet
Content Source:
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion; Division of Cancer Prevention and Control
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tobacco Cessation Change Package. US Department of Health and Human Services; 2019.
- Indicates a patient resource.
- This resource may contain some information that does not reflect the current US Preventive Services Task Force recommendations for breast cancer screening.