Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of cancer death in the United States and its burden is greater in rural and low-income communities. Failure to complete recommended colonoscopy contributes to later-stage CRC diagnosis and worse CRC outcomes, which means timely and successful colonoscopy is a key opportunity to reduce CRC mortality. Using a Type 1 Hybrid Implementation-Effectiveness design, we will randomize 480 subjects from 6-8 primary care clinical organizations in an RCT to accomplish the following:~Test the effectiveness of a patient navigation program delivered by a community-based organization, for increasing colonoscopy completion rates for colorectal cancer screening among rural and rural-serving patients.~Assess implementation and sustainability of the patient navigation program from the perspectives of both community and clinical stakeholders.
This study aims to test the effectiveness of a patient navigation program for increasing colonoscopy completion for colorectal cancer screening, among rural populations. The study will partner with geographically disparate primary care organizations to recruit patients aged 45-75 to the study. The patient navigation program will be delivered through a community organization. This project is critical in advancing our knowledge of the effectiveness of patient navigation for increasing colonoscopy in this patient population as well as for understanding factors that can support long term implementation and sustainability of effective interventions.