AMIGAS Tailored Approach for Cervical Cancer Screening Gets Results

A new Community Guide in Acton story from The Community Guide, “AMIGAS: Promoting Cervical Cancer Screening Among Hispanic Women,” highlights the AMIGAS program for its success in using evidence-based strategies to increase cervical cancer screening. AMIGAS (Ayudando a Las Mujeres con Información, Guía y Amor para su Salud or Helping Women with Information, Guidance, and Love for Their Health) is a bilingual educational outreach program co-created by CDC and designed to help promotoras(community health workers) and other health educators increase cervical cancer screening among Hispanic women. Researchers at CDC, Texas Tech University Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, and the University of Texas School of Public Health, conducted formative research on the health care experiences and knowledge of cervical cancer among Hispanic women. AMIGAS successfully used communication materials and one-on-one education by promotoras to promote and increase cervical cancer screening among Hispanic women in Texas and Washington.

AMIGAS: Promoting Cervical Cancer Screening among Hispanic Women

Summary

First page of the AMIGAS In Action story

The AMIGAS program engaged community health workers, or promotoras, to deliver a multicomponent intervention that doubled the rate of cervical cancer screening among Mexican-American women in Texas and Washington. Community Preventive Services Task Force recommendations were used to inform the selection of program components which included one-on-one education and small media. (Released 2018)