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Barriers and Facilitators to Breast Cancer Screening for Women With Severe Mental Illness

Barriers and Facilitators to Breast Cancer Screening for Women With Severe Mental Illness Background:Women with severe mental illness (SMI) are diagnosed with breast cancer at later stages, with greater mortality rates than the general population. Although breast cancer screening is an acknowledged strategy for early breast cancer detection, women with SMI are 32% to 50% less likely to have regular mammography screenings, yet the specific factors related to the disparity in this population have not been determined.Aim:The purpose of this study was to identify the barriers and facilitators toward breast cancer screening in women diagnosed with SMI.Method:In collaboration with a community-based mental health services agency, women aged 40 and older, diagnosed with SMI, and treated at that agency, were identified and asked if they were willing to participate. Fifteen women agreed to be interviewed. An interpretive descriptive approach was utilized to analyze the qualitative data.Results:The themes elicited included barriers and facilitators to screening. Barriers found were: Psychiatric Symptoms, Fear, Distrust in the Health care System, and Not my Priority. Among the facilitators were Support, Good Health care Experiences, Make it Easy, Integrated Care, and Self-Care.Conclusion:Unique to this study was the understanding by participants that physical health needed to be integrated into their mental health care services through direct support and education, primarily because the process of recovery from mental illness itself entailed the increasing ability for self-care, encompassing a focus on both mental and physical health needs and preventive care. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association SAGE

Barriers and Facilitators to Breast Cancer Screening for Women With Severe Mental Illness

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References (52)

Publisher
SAGE
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2022
ISSN
1078-3903
eISSN
1532-5725
DOI
10.1177/10783903221140600
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Background:Women with severe mental illness (SMI) are diagnosed with breast cancer at later stages, with greater mortality rates than the general population. Although breast cancer screening is an acknowledged strategy for early breast cancer detection, women with SMI are 32% to 50% less likely to have regular mammography screenings, yet the specific factors related to the disparity in this population have not been determined.Aim:The purpose of this study was to identify the barriers and facilitators toward breast cancer screening in women diagnosed with SMI.Method:In collaboration with a community-based mental health services agency, women aged 40 and older, diagnosed with SMI, and treated at that agency, were identified and asked if they were willing to participate. Fifteen women agreed to be interviewed. An interpretive descriptive approach was utilized to analyze the qualitative data.Results:The themes elicited included barriers and facilitators to screening. Barriers found were: Psychiatric Symptoms, Fear, Distrust in the Health care System, and Not my Priority. Among the facilitators were Support, Good Health care Experiences, Make it Easy, Integrated Care, and Self-Care.Conclusion:Unique to this study was the understanding by participants that physical health needed to be integrated into their mental health care services through direct support and education, primarily because the process of recovery from mental illness itself entailed the increasing ability for self-care, encompassing a focus on both mental and physical health needs and preventive care.

Journal

Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association – SAGE

Published: Jan 1, 2022

Keywords: mental illness; mentally ill persons; breast cancer screening; mammography

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