[Article] Sou Hyun Jang – The Role of Medical Tourism in Cancer Screening among Korean Immigrant Women

Sou Hyun Jang (Alum, 2017)

Published two co-authored articles: 

The Role of Medical Tourism in Cancer Screening among Korean Immigrant Women.” Health Behavior and Policy Review. 2019. 6(5), 522-533.

Objective: Korean immigrant (KI) women have lower breast and cervical cancer screening rates than other Asian women subgroups. Medical tourism has emerged as a strong predictor for some types of cancer screening but has not been examined thoroughly with breast and cervical cancer screening. This study examines the association between medical tourism and breast and cervical cancer screening among KI women.

Methods: Data came from a cross-sectional study examining health behaviors of KIs in the Seattle, Washington metropolitan area. Women ages 40-74 years were included in the analysis (N = 102). Outcomes were up-to-date with breast cancer screening and up-to-date with cervical cancer screening. Predictors included socio-demographics, health factors, acculturation, worry about cost of care, and medical tourism. Data analysis included logistic regression.

Results: In multivariate modeling, medical tourism was the only predictor associated with both breast and cervical cancer screening. Women who engaged in medical tourism had greater odds of being up-to-date with breast cancer and cervical cancer screening respectively, compared to those not engaged in medical tourism.

Conclusion: Many KI women are participating in medical tourism for cancer care. Our findings have broad implications for KI women in the US and their US providers.

 

An application of the Science Impact Framework to the Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network from 2014-2018.” Preventive Medicine. 2019. In Press.  

Abstract

The Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network (CPCRN) is a strategic collaborative effort focused on accelerating the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based cancer prevention and control interventions to communities. In 2014, the CPCRN Coordinating Center began collecting information in alignment with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Science Impact Framework. The Science Impact Framework is a CDC-developed approach to trace and link CDC science to events and/or actions recognized as influential to public health, beyond peer-reviewed publications. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the impact of CPCRN activities using key indicators guided by the CDC’s Science Impact Framework. We reviewed annual progress reports submitted by CPCRN centers from 2014 to 2019 to identify the impact indicators. The CPCRN activities were linked to four domains from the Science Impact Framework and its key indicators: Disseminating Science (presentations, training, general communication, and other communication reports), Creating Awareness (requests for expertise, and feedback), Catalyzing Action (grant applications, partnerships and collaborations, research & development, advocacy groups, office practice/point of care changes, and technology creating), and Effecting Change (building public health practice, creation of registries/surveillance, legal/policy changes, and change instilled). Overall, CPCRN activities demonstrate impact beyond peer-reviewed publications and thus should continue building scientific impact to ultimately influence health outcomes.