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Presence and Correlates of Racial Disparities in Adherence to Colorectal Cancer Screening Guidelines

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Abstract

Objectives

We examined the presence and correlates of Black/White racial disparities in adherence to guidelines for colorectal cancer screening (CRCS).

Methods

The sample included 328 Black and 1827 White patients age 50–75 from 24 VA medical facilities who responded to a mailed survey with phone follow-up (response rate: 73% for Blacks and 89% for Whites). CRCS adherence and race were obtained through surveys and supplemented with administrative data. Logistic regressions estimated the contribution of demographic, health, cognitive, and environmental factors to racial disparities in adherence to CRCS guidelines.

Results

In unadjusted analyses, Blacks had slightly lower rates of adherence to CRCS guidelines than Whites (72% versus 77%, p < 0.05). This racial disparity in CRCS adherence was explained by race differences in demographic, health, and environmental factors but not by cognitive factors. Tests for interactions revealed that the association of race with adherence varied significantly across levels of income, education, and marital status. In particular, among those who were married with higher levels of education, CRCS adherence was significantly higher for Whites; whereas among those who were unmarried, with low levels of education, adherence was significantly higher for Blacks.

Conclusion

We found that disparities in CRCS are greatly attenuated in the VA system and both Whites and Blacks have substantially higher rates of CRCS than the national average. These results point to the success of the VA at implementing CRCS system-wide. Our findings also suggest additional initiatives may be needed for unmarried low income white men and higher income black men.

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Acknowledgements

This project was supported by three grants from VA Health Services Research & Development: Investigator Initiated grant #IIR 04-042-2 (Partin); Career Development Award #CDTA 03-174 (Fisher); and Merit Review Entry Program award #MRP 04-412-1 (Burgess).

Conflict of Interest

None disclosed.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA

    Diana J. Burgess PhD, Joseph Grill MS, Siamak Noorbaloochi PhD, Joan M. Griffin PhD & Melissa R. Partin PhD

  2. Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Diana J. Burgess PhD, Siamak Noorbaloochi PhD, Joan M. Griffin PhD & Melissa R. Partin PhD

  3. Department of Family Medicine and Community Health and Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Michelle van Ryn MPH, PhD

  4. Thomson Reuters, Healthcare and Science, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    Jennifer Ricards MS

  5. Division of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas-Houston School of Public Health, Houston, TX, USA

    Sally W. Vernon PhD

  6. Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

    Deborah A. Fisher MD, MHS

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  1. Diana J. Burgess PhD
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  9. Melissa R. Partin PhD
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Correspondence to Diana J. Burgess PhD.

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Burgess, D.J., van Ryn, M., Grill, J. et al. Presence and Correlates of Racial Disparities in Adherence to Colorectal Cancer Screening Guidelines. J GEN INTERN MED 26, 251–258 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-010-1575-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-010-1575-7

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