Practices and perceived barriers to colorectal cancer screening by nurses and physicians working in primary care settings: Implications for cancer prevention and nursing education

5^th International Conference on Family Nursing

June 13-15, 2016 Philadelphia, USA

Joshua K Muliira

Sultan Qaboos University, Oman

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Nurs Care

Abstract :

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and accounts for 7.6 million deaths annually. In the Middle East, an increase in cancer mortality of approximately 181% is expected during the next 15 years. We explored the barriers to colorectal cancer (CRC) screening in primary care settings in Oman. The participants were nurses (57.7%) and physicians (42.3%) with an average age of 32.5 years and clinical experience of 9.5 years. The majority (64.8%) of the participants reported that they rarely ordered, referred to, educated about, or recommended CRC screening for eligible patients. The factors perceived by nurses and physicians to have the most influence on their CRC screening practices were regular availability of patients who need CRC screening, continuing professional education about cancer prevention, availability of cancer specialists, and health facility policy about cancer screening. The only patient-related barrier to CRC screening rated as â�?�?majorâ�? by the majority of participants (63.7%) was patientsâ�?�? lack of awareness about CRC tests. Significant differences existed between nursesâ�?�? and physiciansâ�?�? rating of patient-related barriers, such as fear of finding out about a cancer diagnosis (Pâ�?¥0.05), belief that screening is not effective (Pâ�?¥0.05), embarrassment or anxiety about screening tests (Pâ�?¥0.03), and culture (Pâ�?¥0.0). The reported major system barriers to CRC screening were lack of hospital policy or protocols, shortage of trained healthcare providers, availability of screening services, and waiting time for screening appointments. These findings indicate a need to increase patient awareness and interventions to enhance healthcare providersâ�?�? practices. Nurse educators, researchers, and nurse administrators have major roles to play in cancer prevention.

Biography :

Emal: jkmuliira@gmail.com