LCPH monitored the rate at which radon prescriptions were filled at LCPH and the rate at which radon test kits were used by patients. As shown in the table below, of the 39 participants assigned to Cohort A, nine (23.1%) redeemed the radon test kit prescription at LCPH, though only six returned the test kit to be analyzed, resulting in a success rate of 15.4%. Of the 66 participants in Cohort B, who were provided a test kit onsite when attending their child’s well child exam, 22 returned the test kit to LCPH for analysis, resulting in a success rate of 33.3%.
Return Rate of Radon Test Kits
Cohort
A
B
This active methodology was more than twice as effective as simply providing participants with a prescription to pick up the test kit from LCPH on their own.The results indicate that radon kit distribution through medical providers is an effective practice to increase the number of homes tested for radon.
Potential barriers and limitations of this study include the following:
Providers’ motivation to engage participants and the frequency at which patients were engaged may vary.
Characteristics of the parents interviewed could affect results, including age, sex, number of children, single vs two-parent household, smoking characteristics of household members, etc.
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Patients were randomized to the prescription or test kit group based on whether they were visiting on an even or odd numbered day of the month.
Initially, an expiration date was placed on the prescription to encourage participants to visit LCPH in a timely manner to pick up their radon test kit. This expiration date could have potentially discouraged some people from picking up their kit if they did not do it by the expiration date.
A family potentially could be asked multiple times to test their home for radon if they had more than one child that was visiting the clinic during the study period.
While this study cannot be generalized to all homeowners because the study was only performed among parents/guardians visiting their medical provider for a well-child visit, the results do indicate that the practice of medical providers distributing radon test kits is effective in getting homeowners to test their homes for radon. It removes barriers such as making an additional trip to pick up a test kit, and it builds upon positive relationships that already exist between providers and patients.
Michelle Shapiro is a communication specialist for the Environmental Health & Disability team at NACCHO.
https://www.naccho.org/blog/articles/improving-radon-testing-through-community-collaboration
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