Evaluating Two Evidence-Based Intervention Strategies to Promote CRC Screening Among Latino Adults in a Primary Care Setting

Regular use of colorectal cancer screening can reduce incidence and mortality, but participation rates remain low among low-income, Spanish-speaking Latino adults. We conducted two distinct pilot studies testing the implementation of evidence-based interventions to promote fecal immunochemical test (FIT) screening among Latinos aged 50–75 years who were not up-to-date with CRC screening (n = 200) at a large Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in San Diego, CA. One pilot focused on an opportunistic clinic visit “in-reach” intervention including a 30-min session with a patient navigator, review of an educational “flip-chart,” and a take-home FIT kit with instructions. The second pilot was a system-level “outreach” intervention consisting of mailed materials (i.e., FIT kit, culturally and linguistically tailored instructions, and a pre-paid return envelope). Both received follow-up calls to promote screening completion and referrals for additional screening and treatment if needed. The primary outcome was FIT kit completion and return within 3 months assessed through electronic medical records. The in-reach pilot consisted of mostly insured (85%), women (82%), and Spanish-speaking (88%) patients. The outreach pilot consisted of mostly of Spanish-speaking (73%) women (64%), half of which were insured (50%). At a 3-month follow-up, screening completion was 76% for in-reach and 19% for outreach. These data demonstrate that evidence-based strategies to promote CRC screening can be implemented successfully within FQHCs, but implementation (particularly of mailed outreach) may require setting and population-specific optimization. Patient, provider, and healthcare system related implementation approaches and lessons learned from this study may be implemented in other primary care settings.