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Biomedical subjects

G Stoodt

Publications and source records attributed to G Stoodt.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

Variation in recommendations for breast and cervical cancer screening among primary care physicians in North Carolina, 1991.

Physicians play an important role in recommending and doing cancer screening for their patients. In 1991, the North Carolina Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a survey to determine the counseling and referral practices of primary care physicians practicing in North Carolina. Physicians were asked to report the percentage of patients in various age groups that they recommended receive a clinical breast examination, referral for mammography screening, or a Pap test and at what intervals they recommended each study. They were also asked their perceived barriers to cervical cancer screening. Obstetrician-gynecologists recommended annual Pap smear screening more frequently than did physicians in other specialties for patients of all ages. For mammography, variation existed for recommended screening intervals for all specialties by patient age (35 to 39 years, 40 to 49 years, 50 to 64 years, and over age 65). Recommendations for mammography also differed significantly according to physicians' age and sex. The medical community and the public need a consistent and clear message to promote effective screening maneuvers.

Adult↗

Cancer of the female breast. Improving the public's health through early detection.

Decision makers who represent the public need to understand the extent of the breast cancer problem, the potential for improvement, and the actions needed to achieve this potential. Informed, dedicated physicians, individually and collectively, are instrumental and can be most effective leaders in this process. There are several evidences of the fine tradition of the medical profession to advocate practices and policies in the interest of the best health of our patients. The North Carolina Medical Society recently adopted a position statement encouraging the provision of screening mammograms and pap smears by both private and self-insured third party payors; the North Carolina Academy of Family Practice recently adopted a position statement urging priority be placed on allocating resources for efficacious preventive services; the multiple specialty organizations developed the widely recognized national guidelines for early breast cancer detection; and the ACR continues its efforts to assure quality mammography services. To the end that this paper has informed and stimulated further sharing, discussion or debate about the extent of the breast cancer problem, the potential for improvement, and the actions needed to achieve this potential, it has accomplished its purpose. To the end that the physician community acts to improve early breast cancer detection, we will have fulfilled the common purpose that binds us as physicians to one another and to the people we are privileged and bound to serve.

Adult↗