Patient Navigation for Lung Screening at MGH Community Health Centers

Patient Navigation for Lung Screening at MGH Community Health Centers

To develop and implement a patient navigator (PN) program for lung screening and smoking cessation in community health center primary care practices. This program will be evaluated in a randomized controlled trial of primary care patients who currently smoke.

The specific aims of this study are:

Specific Aim 1: To develop a patient navigator (PN) program for lung screening for patients who are current smokers, aged 55-77 years, potentially eligible for lung screening and are receiving care at community health centers (CHCs) affiliated with MGH.

Specific Aim 2: To evaluate the effectiveness of the new lung screening PN program in improving screening rates and increasing use of tobacco cessation services in a randomized controlled trial.

Specific Aim 3: To demonstrate that equity is maintained in rates of lung screening and in follow up of abnormal chest CT results, comparing eligible smokers from CHCs with eligible smokers from other practices within the MGH primary care network.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. adult patients aged 55-77 years who are current cigarette smokers (according to an algorithm using electronic medical record data), and
2. receive care at one of the five Massachusetts General Hospital community health centers.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. patients who have previously received a diagnosis of lung cancer,
2. have undergone a chest CT within 18 months before enrollment,
3. are subsequently identified as having died prior to the study intervention,
4. deemed by their primary care provider as not eligible for lung screening.