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The Influence of Disease Perceptions on the Participation of Melanoma Patients and their Partners in Skin Self- Examination Education
Gaber Rikki, Hultgren Brittney, Stapleton Jerod, Mallett Kimberly A, Turrisi Rob, Hernandez Claudia, Bilmoria Karl, Wayne Jeffrey D, Martini Mary C and Robinson June K*
Department of Dermatology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
- *Corresponding Author:
- Robinson June K
Research Professor of Dermatology
Department of Dermatology
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
676 St. Clair St, Room 1265
Chicago, IL 60611, USA
Tel: 312-926-7449
E-mail: june-robinson@northwestern.edu
Received date: July 26, 2013; Accepted date: September 20, 2013; Published date: September 23, 2013
Citation: Gaber R, Brittney H, Jerod S, Mallett Kimberly A, Rob T, et al. (2013) The Influence of Disease Perceptions on the Participation of Melanoma Patients and their Partners in Skin Self- Examination Education. J Community Med Health Educ 3: 242. doi:10.4172/2161-0711.1000242
Copyright: © 2013 Gaber R, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
By examining differences between patients who enroll or decline to enroll in a partner-based study, future research can benefit and adapt recruitment strategies to reduce sampling biases. This study examined differences between melanoma patients’ who either declined or enrolled in an intervention aimed at increasing skin self-examination (SSE) with partner assistance. Specifically, differences were assessed for gender, age, perception of likelihood of getting another melanoma, benefits of early detection, and severity of the disease. Additionally, reasons for declining were examined. Among 368 melanoma patients interviewed during their appointment with the treating physician, 187 enrolled in the study and 181 declined to participate. No significant age or gender differences between enrolled and declined patients were observed. However, enrolled participants had significantly higher reports on the likelihood of getting another melanoma, severity of melanoma, and early detection as being beneficial (p<0.001). Among those declining to participate, males reported being “too busy and can’t make follow-up appointments” whereas females reported their “partner won’t assist”. Results indicate perceptions of the benefits of early detection, the severity of melanoma, and patients’ increased risk of developing a melanoma may have influenced patients’ decision to participate. Future studies may benefit by highlighting these topics in order to motivate more patients to participant in partner studies.
