Promoting Awareness: Culturally Tailored Education on Bowel Screening and Colonoscopy
Funded byย Cancer Institute NSW, this project aims to improve bowel cancer screening awareness, confidence, and access among culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities through culturally tailored, in-language education and peer information sharing.
The Impact
“The lived experience shared by one participant during the education session was very powerful. It changed my mind and gave me the confidence to take the Bowel Screening Test.”
Jason, Cantonese participant
The program has delivered 24 in language education sessions across Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Thai, Tagalog, and Nepali groups.
These sessions engaged 384 participants in total, primarily aged 45 -74, theย key demographic for the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, while also reaching younger adults and those over 74 who remain interested in proactive bowel health.
The program incorporated interactive demonstrations, multilingual Cancer Institute NSW resources, and facilitator-led Q&A discussions toย address common misconceptions and uncertainty about colonoscopy.
A major achievement was the strong uptake of the โReach 5โ peerย education model, with 112 participants committing to share information with at least five others, extending bowel screening awareness to more than 350 community members. Personal Stories shared by some participants during the education sessions were highly influential in motivating others to reconsider screening.
