Cancer Education for Community Health Aides/Practitioners (CHA/Ps) in Alaska assessing comfort with cancer

Background. Village-based Community Health Aides and Community Health Practitioners (CHA/Ps) are the primary providers of health care in rural Alaska. Methods. We discuss the development and results of a CHA/P cancer self-assessment survey, which assessed comfort with cancer knowledge and providing cancer information. Results. A total of 402 responses were received from a mailed questionnaire to 477 CHA/Ps. Respondents were predominantly Alaska Native women. Using a 5-point Likert scale from don't know to very comfortable, approximately 50% of CHA/Ps reported feeling "OK" when providing information about cancer risk factors, cancer screening, surviving cancer, and providing care and support. CHA/Ps reported feeling less comfortable with discussing cancer diagnosis, treatment, pain, and loss and grief.