Helping Patients and Providers Make Better Decisions About Colorectal Cancer Screening

Patients' completion of colonoscopy, fecal immunochemical testing (FIT), or other CRC screening within 6 months, based on documentation in the participants' electronic health record.

Decision quality will be assessed using the multi-dimensional measure of informed consent (MMIC), where a high-quality decision is one where the individual has adequate knowledge regarding the available options and undergoes the screening test that he or she has chosen or that fits his or her values ("values concordance"). Patient knowledge of colorectal cancer and screening will be assessed by a 12-item test made up of 6 multiple choice questions and 6 true-false questions. Adequate knowledge = 9 correct. Concordance will be measured between the patient's test choice at the post-provider survey and the screening test underwent, if any, within 6 months after patient enrollment.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening uptake and type of screening test completed within 6 months of enrolled was assessed, as documented in the electronic health record (EHR).

Patients' intention to be screened for CRC with any CRC screening test will be measured with 1 item: "Do you plan to get any type of colon cancer screening test within the next 6 months?". The response options were: 5=Definitely; 4=Probably; 3=May or may not; 2=Probably not; and 1=Definitely not. Higher positive change means CRC screening intention increased. Increased intention to be screened is a better outcome.

For those patients who answer the screening intent item with "definitely not," "probably not," or "may or may not", test choice will be categorized as "no screening". Those who answer Screening Intent with "Probably" or "Definitely" have Test Choice categorized based on their answer to a single item: "If you have a colon test, which one would you choose?" Response options are: Stool test (FIT or Cologuard), Colonoscopy, Another test, or Don't know.

Knowledge was assessed with six multiple choice and six true/false questions regarding general information (including risk factors, screening test options, and test frequency) of CRC and CRC screening. Knowledge scores were derived by summing correct responses to the 12 individual knowledge questions (range, 0-12), and change was calculated from baseline (T0) to post-intervention (T1), post-intervention (T1) to post-provider visit (T2), and from baseline (T0) to post-provider (T2) by using the knowledge score at the later time point minus the knowledge score of the former time point. The range for change could be -12 to 12 with higher values meaning an increase in knowledge which is a better outcome.

Multiple choice questions assessing the patients' perception of how likely they are to get colon cancer in the next 5 years, in the next 10 years, and sometime during their lifetime. Each has response options: 4=very likely, 3=somewhat likely, 2=somewhat unlikely, and 1=very unlikely. The mean of the 3 questions was calculated (each combined score has a range of 1 to 4) at each time point. We calculated the change from baseline (T0) to post-intervention (T1), post-intervention (T1) to post-provider visit (T2), and from baseline (T0) to post-provider (T2) by using the mean of the later time point minus the mean of the former time point.

The range for change could be from -3 to 3 with higher values meaning an increase in perceived risk.

Patients' decision conflict is assessed using the low literacy version of the Decision Conflict Scale, a ten-item instrument that assesses patients' subjective feeling regarding the decision process over five areas. Each item has three response categories (yes, no, unsure). Scores are summed; divided by 10; and multiplied by 25. Scores range from 0 [no decisional conflict] to 100 [extremely high decisional conflict]. Negative change means decision conflict decreased. A decrease in decision conflict is a better outcome.

Patients answered four items assessing the extent to which they were involved in the decision-making process. Each item had response options: 1= A lot; 2=Some; 3=A little; 4=Not at all. Each item was analyzed separately and responses "A lot", "Some" and "A little" were considered "enough" and received 1 point. The response "Not at all" was considered "not enough" and received 0 points.

A single-item measure taken from the Colon Cancer Testing Decision Quality Worksheet v.2.0 assessing if the patients' primary care provider asked them which type of colon cancer screening test they wanted.

A 3-item measure assessing how much effort was made by their provider to: explain colon cancer screening, ask for screening preferences, and incorporate those preferences into the decision. Response options ranged from 0="No effort was made" to 9="Every effort was made". The three items were summed and a mean was calculated. Scores can range from 0-9. A higher score indicates more perceived shared decision making. Higher perceived shared decision making is a better outcome.

A FIT, colonoscopy, or other CRC screening test ordered within 6 months of each participants' enrollment based on documentation in the electronic health record (EHR).

Opening the provider notification sent for each patient was assessed by reviewing the electronic health record (EHR).