Authors

  1. Lin, Zu-Chun PhD, RN
  2. Wang, Shu-Fang RN

Article Content

Background, Aims, and Significance:

Taiwanese women have low mammography screening rates. Health information offered on the Web frequently fails the criteria for tailored interventions by being neither theoretically based nor patient centered. This study was aimed at examining the impact of a tailored Web-based educational intervention on Taiwanese women's perceptions of and intentions for mammography. Concepts of the Transtheoretical Model (TTM) were used for the development of the tailored intervention. This study demonstrates the application of TTM's concepts in a tailored intervention design for patient education.

 

Methods:

A pretest-posttest design was used. A total of 185 women who were not yet contemplating mammography were recruited from communities located in Hualien, Taiwan. They were randomly assigned to one of three groups: complete tailored intervention (CTI), tailored message intervention (TMI), or standard intervention (SI). Participants accessed the Web site either at home or at work. After the completion of the interventions, an online survey was conducted using the Stage of Adoption of Mammography Question, the Decisional Balance of Mammography Inventory, and the Demographics Inventory.

 

Results:

The CTI group had a higher mean on mammography perception than did the TMI and SI groups. The differences were significant (F2,179 = 4.902, P < .05). More CTI participants had stronger intentions for mammography than did TMI participants and SI participants (odds ratio, 1.90; 95% confidence interval, 1.09-3.33; & [chi]22 = 12.909, P = .00).

 

Discussion:

This study illustrated the effectiveness of theoretically based tailored intervention for promoting mammography. It will be worthwhile to test this approach in different stages (ie, contemplation to action) of adopting mammography. This approach can be adapted for designing tailored Web-based interventions for different health behaviors. It also can be used for healthcare providers to educate their patients in clinical environments.

 

Section Description

We are pleased to share the paper presentation abstracts from the Summer Institute in Nursing Informatics, Informatics at the Point of Care: A Barrier or a Bridge?, held at the University of Maryland School of Nursing, July 22 to 25, 2009. The program, chaired by Dr Judy Ozbolt, was a great success. Each of the following abstracts was selected for presentation by a peer-review committee.