Researchers wanted to know what helps high-risk patients get genetic testing for breast or ovarian cancer risk. They studied over 7,000 patients at eight clinics in California. They tested three ways to remind patients about testing: mailed brochures, emails, and text messages. They also looked at two different clinic systems: one where testing was offered in the same building as the doctor's visit, and another where patients had to go to a different building.
The study found that all three reminder methods—brochures, emails, and texts—led to very low testing rates, all under 3%. There was no clear winner among the reminder types. However, the clinic's setup made a bigger difference. Patients were about 28% less likely to have a test ordered when they had to go to a different building compared to when testing was available in the same building.
It's important to be careful with these results. The comparison of the two clinic systems was done by looking back at past records, not by randomly assigning patients. This means we can see a link between the clinic setup and testing rates, but we can't say for sure that one caused the other. The main takeaway is that making testing convenient and part of the regular clinic visit might be more important than how we remind patients about it.