Group Versus Individual Culturally Tailored and Theory-Based Education to Promote Cervical Cancer Screening Among the Underserved Hispanics: A Cluster Randomized Trial

Purpose: To determine whether group education is as effective as individual education in improving cervical cancer screening uptake along the US-Mexico border. Design: Cluster randomized controlled study. Setting: El Paso and Hudspeth Counties, Texas. Participants: Three hundred women aged 21 to 65 years, uninsured, due for a Pap test, no prior history of cervical cancer or hysterectomy. Intervention: Theory-based, culturally appropriate program comprised of outreach, educational session, navigation services, and no-cost cervical cancer testing. Measures: Baseline, immediate postintervention, and 4-month follow-up surveys measured knowledge and theoretical constructs from the Health Belief Model, Theory of Reasoned Action, and the Social Cognitive Theory. Analysis: Relative risk regression analyses to assess the effects of educational delivery mode on the uptake of screening. Mixed effect models to analyze changes in psychosocial variables. Results: One hundred and fifty women assigned to each educational group; 99% Hispanic. Of all, 85.7% completed the follow-up survey. Differences in screening rate at follow-up were analyzed by education type. Overall screening rate at follow-up was 73.2%, no significant difference by education type (individual: 77.6%, group: 68.9% P = .124). Significant increases among group education at follow-up for knowledge, perceived susceptibility, perceived seriousness, and subjective norms and significant decrease for perceived benefits. Conclusion: This study provides evidence to support the effectiveness of group education to promote cervical cancer screening among vulnerable Hispanic women and offers an additional method to address cervical cancer disparities.