Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing
Article OnlineA Community‐Based Participatory Research Approach to Understanding Pap Testing Adherence Among Vietnamese American Immigrants
Section snippets
Theoretical Framework
We used the broad and comprehensive ecological model (EM) of health behavior as a theoretical framework to organize and explain the multiple factors that may influence Pap testing behavior in this study (Figure 1) (Sallis, Owen, & Fisher, 2008). A central concept of the EM is that health behavior is determined by multiple influencing factors. The EM consists of four principles: multiple levels of factors influence health behaviors (e.g., intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational, health
Community‐Based Participatory Research Approach
We learned about the Vietnamese community from its members and through prolonged engagement. The first author participated in community projects and outreach activities (e.g., health fairs) from February 2007 to January 2010, before the study began. A partnership was developed between the Asian Family Center a program of Oregon's Immigrant & Refugee Community Organization (IRCO) and Oregon Health & Science University. Health educators at IRCO/Asian Family Center identified cervical cancer as a
Demographic Characteristics and Pap Testing Practices
The sample ranged from age 21 to 87 (M = 50 years). Table 1 summarizes information on demographic characteristics. Approximately 74% (n = 157) of participants had received a Pap test at least once within their lifetime, and 69% (n = 145) reported having adhered to Pap testing recommendations. Of the participants who were age 70 or older, seven had never received a Pap test within their lifetime.
Community Resources
Approximately 30% of participants knew of cervical cancer screening programs in the community.
Discussion
In this study, only 74% of VIW (foreign‐born) participants had received a Pap test at least once within their lifetime, and 69% had adhered to screening recommendations. Although these Pap testing rates were slightly higher than rates in most VAW (includes immigrants [foreign‐born] and U.S.‐born) studies (Ho et al., 2005; Tung et al., 2008; Xu et al., 2005), this study demonstrated that these rates were much lower than the proposed Healthy People 2020 objective (U.S. Department of Health and
Acknowledgment
Funded by the American Cancer Society Doctoral Degree Scholarship in Cancer Nursing (DSCN‐08‐208‐01); Sigma Theta Tau Research Awards; Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing; Health Resources Service Administration (2A10HP0001309‐10); and U.S. Department of Education (P200A070437). The authors thank Jonathan Fine and Leslie Bienen for editorial assistance.
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