Homelessness, Patient Navigation, and Lung Cancer Screening in a Health Center Setting

Does the effect of patient navigation on lung cancer screening completion differ for patients currently vs formerly experiencing homelessness?In this subgroup analysis of a randomized clinical trial involving 260 participants, patient navigation significantly improved lung cancer screening completion among both those currently (20% absolute increase) and formerly (41% absolute increase) experiencing homelessness, but the effect size was significantly smaller for those currently experiencing homelessness. Communication barriers likely underpinned this differential effect.These findings suggest that optimizing screening participation among patients who have experienced homelessness may require further tailoring of the navigation intervention and policy efforts to promote housing for people who are currently experiencing homelessness.

Corresponding Author: Travis P. Baggett, MD, MPH, Division of General Internal Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, 100 Cambridge St, 16th Floor, Boston, MA 02114 (tbaggett@mgh.harvard.edu).

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