How reminders given to patients and physicians affected pap smear use in a health maintenance organization: results of a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND

Despite its effectiveness as a method of controlling cervical carcinoma, the use of Pap smear testing remains incomplete, and its promotion in the primary care setting provides an important opportunity for intervention.

METHODS

The authors conducted a randomized controlled trial that involved three sites of a health maintenance organization (HMO) serving an urban minority population. Their aim was to evaluate the impact of reminders given to patients and physicians on site visitation by patients and Pap smear use. Eligible women (n=5801) were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 intervention combinations (in which reminders were given to either the patient or the physician, to both, or to neither). If they were ineligible for patient reminder intervention, patients were randomized only to physician reminder intervention (the presence or absence of it). The letter of reminder mailed to the patient invited women due for Pap smears to visit the HMO site, and the reminder for physicians was a medical record notice that a Pap smear was due. Logistic and survival analyses were used to investigate the correlation of intervention status with visitation, interval of time to a visit, and Pap smear use.

RESULTS

In the primary intent-to-treat analysis, there was no significant effect of either patient or physician reminder interventions on rates of visitation or Pap smear completion. The secondary efficacy analyses demonstrated no overall effect of either patient or physician reminders, but effects among subgroups of women at individual HMO sites were noted. At Site 3, there was an apparent increase in time to the next visit among the subgroup of women with a chronic illness (16 weeks with intervention vs. 9 weeks without). With the physician reminder, the odds that a Pap smear would be given during the study year were increased among women without a previous Pap smear at Site 1 (adjusted odds ratio=1.39) and those with a chronic illness at Site 2 (adjusted odds ratio=3.38).

CONCLUSIONS

Reminders given to patients and physicians had a limited impact on visitation by patients to the HMO sites or Pap smear completion. Although some subgroups of women may benefit, the authors also observed a possibly unfavorable impact among other subgroups. These results emphasize the importance of identifying more effective interventions, targeting them to women most likely to benefit, and not overlooking the possibility that preventive intervention will have an unanticipated adverse effect.