Use of Novel Tailored Reminders in Rural Primary Care

Effective programs are needed that can overcome barriers to CRC screening among persons in rural communities. There is good evidence to suggest that a program employing patient activation and tailoring to address the specific concerns of individuals will be an effective model for addressing CRC screening underutilization for rural residents. In this study, we propose to test such a model among rural primary care patients, a group that has, to date, received little attention. We will also bolster how tailored messaging is traditionally conducted by using a tailored informational flyer format that uses physicians as the message source to increase message saliency. This study will help to assess how a relatively low-cost, disseminable technology can effectively circumvent the "systems problems" endemic in rural primary care. This project will lay the groundwork in practice based research network clinics for future intervention studies which operationalize office and community-based technology to help rural primary care patients make informed health decisions and engage in healthy lifestyle behaviors.