The impact of distribution of a patient-education pamphlet in a multidisciplinary breast clinic.

STUDY GOAL

To determine the impact of the distribution of patient-education pamphlets to women with benign breast conditions in a large urban multidisciplinary breast clinic.

METHODS

It is clinic policy to administer such materials at the first patient visit for these conditions. A standardized telephone interview was conducted with a random sample of 50 such patients at a mean of five months after that visit (range 1-12 months).

RESULTS

While only 29 of the 50 women interviewed reported receiving such materials, 27 of these 29 women reported reading them. The patient's level of education and whether the patient had friends/relatives with breast cancer were not different between the women who had read the pamphlets and the women who had not (p = NS). The women who had received and read the material scored significantly better than did women who had not on a brief breast cancer screening questionnaire (p = 0.027). Of the former, all but three found the information of use; three-fourths of such women rated the materials 8 or higher on an increasing-usefulness scale of 1-10. The most frequently reported benefit gained from the materials was the proper conduct of breast self-examination. Overall patient satisfaction with the pamphlets was 91%. Half of the women receiving such materials shared them with other women.

CONCLUSIONS

Patient-education pamphlets distributed at a multidisciplinary breast clinic result in high patient satisfaction and better patient knowledge of breast health. However, these materials were received and read by patients less often than was expected by staff. Because 82% of all women interviewed reported that the clinic staff, the distributed pamphlets, and other reading materials were their best sources of information, it is further concluded that the distribution of such materials is an important function of a multidisciplinary breast clinic.