American journal of preventive medicine
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Federally Qualified Community Health Centers (FQHCs) are on the frontline of efforts to improve healthcare equity and reduce disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study assesses the provision and equity of preventive care and chronic disease management by FQHCs before, during, and after the pandemic. ⋯ While preventive screening and chronic disease management in FQHCs have largely rebounded to pre-pandemic levels following an initial decline, persistent disparities highlight the need for targeted interventions to support FQHCs in addressing healthcare inequities.
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Chronic pain has been highlighted as an important public health and clinical health issue. The prevalence of chronic pain has been increasing, with notable disparities for many minoritized populations. However, evidence regarding sexual minoritized populations and chronic pain is lacking. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to compare the prevalence of chronic pain among men and women by sexual identity. ⋯ Sexual minoritized populations have a greater burden of chronic pain that should be considered in moving forward in pain work. Future work in this area is needed to understand why these disparities exist and how best to provide care and treatment to those affected.
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Review
Breast and Cervical Cancer Screenings: A Systematic Economic Review of Patient Navigation Services.
This paper examined the economic evidence of patient navigation services to increase breast and cervical cancer screenings among historically disadvantaged racial and ethnic populations and people with lower incomes. ⋯ All estimates of cost per QALY/LY saved for breast cancer screening were below a conservative threshold of $50,000 indicating that patient navigation services for breast cancer screening were cost-effective. There is limited evidence to determine cost-effectiveness of patient navigation services for cervical cancer screening.
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Income inequality is associated with poor health outcomes, but its association with colorectal cancer is not well-studied. The authors aimed to determine the association between income inequality and colorectal cancer incidence/mortality in U.S. counties, and hypothesized that this association was mediated by deprivation. ⋯ Much of income inequality's association with colorectal cancer outcomes operates through deprivation. Rural counties have a stronger association between higher income inequality and higher mortality, which works in tandem with deprivation.