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334671
Patient-Provider Communication about Prostate-Specific Antigen Testing and Prostate Cancer Treatment: Evidence from Health Information National Trends Survey


Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Niodita Gupta, MD, MPH, PhD(c), Department of Health Services Research and Administration, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE
Soumitra Sudip Bhuyan, PhD, MPH, School of Public Health, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN
Aastha Chandak, BTech, PhD(c), Health Services Research and Administration, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE

Sudhir Isharwal, MD, Department of Urology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE
Chad LaGrange, MD, Department of Urology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE
Objective:Various professional associations recommend that patients and providers make a shared decision about Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing for Prostate cancer (PCa). The goal of this study is to evaluate the extent of patient-provider communication for PSA testing and treatment of PCa, and to examine the patient specific factors associated with positive patient-provider communication.

Methods:This is a cross-sectional observational study using data from cycle 2 and 3 of the fourth edition of Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS). We examined the association of patient characteristics with four aspects of patient-provider communication regarding PSA test and PCa treatment namely: expert opinion of PSA test, accuracy of PSA test, side effects of PCa treatment, and treatment need of PCa. Study sample included men ≥40 years not suffering from cancer (N=1,706).

Results:Health care providers communicated with patients about controversies around PSA screening, accuracy of the PSA screening, side effects of PCa treatment, and PCa treatment need in 17.2%, 25.4%, 30.7%, and 23.3% of the cases respectively. Patients having a recent routine check-up, regular healthcare provider, better health status, older age, married status, belonging to race other than White and African American, higher annual household income, and already having undergone a PSA test are associated with patient-provider communication.

Conclusion: Fewer discussions about PSA testing occur between providers and their patients, which limits the shared decision-making process for PCa screening. This study helps to identify patient-related barriers in patient-provider communication and thereby informing the providers to improve their practice by considering these factors.

Learning Areas:

Communication and informatics
Provision of health care to the public
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
Evaluate the extent of patient-provider communication for PSA testing and treatment of PCa. Examine the patient specific factors associated with positive patient-provider communication.

Keyword(s): Cancer and Men’s Health, Communication

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I was involved in developing the idea described in this abstract, interpreting the results, and discussing the results. As a graduate student, I have been a part of several projects and publications related to local health departments, communication improvement, cancer care and associated mortality, and long term care. Additionally, my medical background gives me a deeper insight of patient care. My research interests include cancer care, maternal and child health, and health administration research.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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