Date of Conferral

2023

Degree

Doctor of Healthcare Administration (D.H.A.)

School

Health Education and Promotion

Advisor

Diana Naser

Abstract

In 2020, U.S. hospitals became overwhelmed by patients with the viral illness COVID-19. Health systems were advised by the U.S. Surgeon General and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to suspend elective procedures, including mammograms, colonoscopies, and lung computed tomography scans. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate whether there was a significant difference in completed appointments, cancer screenings, and cancer diagnoses in consumers receiving targeted direct mail and email communications during the COVID-19 pandemic, based on age, gender, and geographic location. The elaboration likelihood model of persuasion, which emphasized the use of marketing to change consumer behaviors related to health, provided the theoretical framework for this study. Secondary data from 2021 from an Illinois health system were analyzed using multiple linear regression. The results demonstrate that there was a significant difference (p < 0.001) in response to completed appointments, cancer screenings, and cancer diagnoses by age, gender, or geography from consumers receiving targeted direct mail messages versus targeted email messages during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings indicate that targeting women for cancer screenings may yield better results, as women were more likely to respond after receiving email and direct mail marketing messages. Motivating consumers may be best accomplished through direct mail for those age 65 to 74 and email for those age 55 to 64. Positive social change implications include the potential for greater long-term awareness of needed cancer screenings, which may lead to increases in completed screenings, earlier diagnosis of cancers, better quality of life, and decreased cost of care.

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