TY - JOUR
T1 - Using the internet to identify women's sources of breast-health education and screening
AU - Thomas, Barbara
AU - Stamler, Lynnette Leeseberg
AU - Lafreniere, Kathryn D.
AU - Out, Jennifer
AU - Delahunt, Tabitha D.
N1 - Funding Information:
Barbara Thomas, Lynnette Leeseberg Stamler, and Tabitha D. Delahunt are affiliated with the Faculty of Nursing, and Kathryn D. Lafreniere and Jennifer Out are affiliated with the Department of Psychology, University of Windsor, ON, Canada. Address correspondence to: Barbara Thomas, EdD, RN, Faculty of Nursing, University of Windsor, ON, N9B 3P4, Canada (E-mail: thomas9@uwindsor.ca). This work was supported by a grant from the University of Windsor, Research Grants for Women.
PY - 2002
Y1 - 2002
N2 - Health professionals, women's groups, the media and the Internet have all played a role in educating the public about breast health and breast screening methods. Yet, with all the information that is available to women, their participation rates have been less than optimal. This paradox has resulted in the need to learn more about the sources that influence woman to participate in breast screening. In an innovative study using the Internet, over 800 women, primarily from Canada and the United States, were surveyed about their knowledge, attitudes and influences regarding their breast screening practices. Current health status, screening practices and influences of various health professionals on women's health promotion activities were analyzed. Comparisons of the women's perceptions across age groups and national differences between Canadian and American respondents are presented. Women in the older age group reported receiving more encouragement for breast screening activities from physicians, nurses and others than did younger women. American respondents reported perceiving more support from nurses for breast screening than did their Canadian counterparts. A high number of American respondents reported having been diagnosed with breast cancer, while only a small number of Canadian respondents reported this diagnosis. The results from this study can be use in planning health promotion activities relevant to various populations of women. Benefits and limitations of using the Internet as a research medium are briefly discussed.
AB - Health professionals, women's groups, the media and the Internet have all played a role in educating the public about breast health and breast screening methods. Yet, with all the information that is available to women, their participation rates have been less than optimal. This paradox has resulted in the need to learn more about the sources that influence woman to participate in breast screening. In an innovative study using the Internet, over 800 women, primarily from Canada and the United States, were surveyed about their knowledge, attitudes and influences regarding their breast screening practices. Current health status, screening practices and influences of various health professionals on women's health promotion activities were analyzed. Comparisons of the women's perceptions across age groups and national differences between Canadian and American respondents are presented. Women in the older age group reported receiving more encouragement for breast screening activities from physicians, nurses and others than did younger women. American respondents reported perceiving more support from nurses for breast screening than did their Canadian counterparts. A high number of American respondents reported having been diagnosed with breast cancer, while only a small number of Canadian respondents reported this diagnosis. The results from this study can be use in planning health promotion activities relevant to various populations of women. Benefits and limitations of using the Internet as a research medium are briefly discussed.
KW - Breast health education
KW - Breast screening
KW - Internet research
KW - Questionnaire
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U2 - 10.1300/J013v36n01_03
DO - 10.1300/J013v36n01_03
M3 - Article
C2 - 12215002
AN - SCOPUS:0036041798
SN - 0363-0242
VL - 36
SP - 33
EP - 48
JO - Women and Health
JF - Women and Health
IS - 1
ER -