Factors associated with attendance and attendance patterns in a population-based mammographic screening program. (June 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Larsen, Marthe; Moshina, Nataliia; Sagstad, Silje; Hofvind, Solveig
• Is Part Of: Journal of medical screening. Volume 28:Number 2(2021)
• Page Start: 169
• Page End: 176
• Publication Date: 2021-06
• Subjects: Mammography -- screening -- attendance -- attendance patterns -- breast neoplasm; Medical screening -- Periodicals; 362.177
• DOI: 10.1177/0969141320932945
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0969-1413

Abstract

Objective: To explore the factors associated with attendance and attendance pattern in BreastScreen Norway. Methods: We evaluated the number of invitations (n = 1, 253, 995) and attendances, 2015–2019, stratified by age, invitation method, screening unit and time of appointment. Attendance pattern was analysed for women invited 10 times (n = 47, 979), 1996–2019. The association of education level, body mass index, physical activity and smoking status with attendance was analysed for a sub-sample of women (n = 37, 930). Descriptive statistics were used to analyse attendance, and negative binomial regression was used to analyse the association between the total number of attendances and education level and lifestyle factors. Results: The attendance rate was 76.0%, 2015–2019. The rate was 78.0% for women aged >64 and 73.9% for those <55 . We found a rate of 82.0% for women who received a digital invitation, while it was 73.7% for those invited by post. The rate was 78.1% for invitations in the late afternoon, 3–6 p.m., while later appointments reached a rate of 73.7%. Half of the women invited 10 times attended all times. The predicted total number of attendances was 9 out of 10 for the factors investigated. Conclusion: The highest attendance rates were shown for women aged >64, those who received digital invitations and those having appointments in late afternoon. The differences in predicted number of attendances between the investigated factors were minor. Overall, BreastScreen Norway has a high attendance rate. However, efforts aimed at increasing the attendance in specific groups should be considered.