Programs | Breast Cancer Interventions

Health-related programs for breast cancer screening^1-2

Employee programs refer to activities that include active employee involvement, such as classes, seminars or competitions. Employee programs are frequently provided on-site at the workplace.

Employee health surveys in the workplace provide assessment and implementation opportunities

• Information from employee health surveys can be used to identify the percent of women employees that have received appropriately timed breast cancer screening. Women who are in the appropriate age group and have not received screening should receive screening education and information on employee health benefits related to screenings

One-on-one patient education is recommended to increase mammography screening

• One-on-one education is defined as communication of information to individual clients by telephone or through face-to-face encounters, conducted by a health care or allied health professional (e.g., health educator) or by a lay health advisor or volunteer
• The education sessions can occur in clinical settings, homes, or worksites
• The education content can address a general target population or be tailored to the unique circumstances and characteristics of specific individuals that are identified through individual assessments
• One-on-one education can be supplemented by the use of:
  • Brochures
  • Informational letters, or
  • Reminders (printed or telephone)

Worksite-wide education campaigns increase use of screening services

• Improving communications about the availability and coverage of preventive services is recommended to increase their use. For example, flyers or brochures about the screenings could be placed in employee break rooms and on bulletin boards. Additional strategies to consider include mailing information and reminders to employees’ homes and company-wide e-mails to employees
• The Task Force on Community Preventive Services reports that use of cancer screening services increases when employees receive consistent communication and reminders about cancer screening

Introduce specialized on-site screenings such as a mobile mammography van

• Workplace screening programs may include mobile mammography vans that come to the worksite or to a nearby site and provide on-the-spot screening for women. Mobile mammography services are often available from hospitals and other clinical centers. These services offer convenience, less time away from work, and support from fellow workers to attend screening programs together
• Bringing mobile screening services on-site is often an effective strategy to reduce out-of-pocket expenses. In addition, an on-site mobile screening service can help reduce structural barriers that keep many women from getting regular mammograms. On-site interventions such as these reduce the access barriers that prevent employees from receiving preventive services such as location of a screening facility, its hours of operation, and the availability of child care

Address obesity and alcohol use as additional risk factors for breast cancer

• The health-related program strategies and interventions listed for physical activity, nutrition, obesity, and alcohol misuse include lifestyle activities recommended to reduce breast cancer risk