AUTHOR=Guerra Carmen E. , Verderame Emily , Nicholson Andrea , Wan LiYea , Brooks Ari D. 

TITLE=A Plan-Do-Study-Act Approach to the Development, Implementation and Evaluation of a Patient Navigation Program to Reduce Breast Cancer Screening Disparities in Un- and Under-Insured, Racially and Ethnically Diverse Urban Women

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.595786

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2021.595786

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Introduction:</bold> For the over 28 million Americans without health insurance, there is a great need to develop programs that help meet the health needs of the uninsured population.</p><p><bold>Materials and Methods:</bold> We applied the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) quality improvement framework to the development, implementation, and evaluation of a breast cancer screening navigation program for un- and under-insured women.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Six critical steps emerged: (1) obtain program funding; (2) navigator training; (3) establish a referral base network of community partners that serve the un- and under-insured women; (4) implement a process to address the barriers to accessing mammography; (5) develop a language- and culturally-tailored messaging and media campaign; and (6) develop measures and process evaluation to optimize and expand the program's reach.</p><p><bold>Discussion:</bold> A Plan-Do-Study-Act approach allowed identification of the key elements for successful development, implementation and optimization of a breast cancer screening navigation program aimed at reaching and screening un- and underinsured women.</p>