Dj. Madlonkay, THE EFFECTIVENESS OF A MAIL REMINDER SYSTEM FOR DEPOT MEDROXYPROGESTERONE INJECTIONS, Archives of family medicine, 5(4), 1996, pp. 234-236
To determine if a mail reminder system leads to an increase in the per
centage of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (Depo-Provera) injections
administered on time, the charts of 184 women were reviewed. The remi
nder postcard included the due dates of both the next medroxyprogester
one injection and the next Papanicolaou test. Timeliness of injections
improved with the reminder system from 64% administered on time to 76
% (P<.02). Injections given late despite the reminders were late a mea
n of 8 days. Injections given late before the reminder system began we
re late a mean of 20 days (P<.05). If injections given during the inje
ction's 14-day ''grace'' period are included, the on-time rate improve
d from 87% to 96% with the reminder system (P<.005). The reminder syst
em was not effective in ensuring annual Papanicolaou testing. Vigilanc
e is needed to ensure that women receiving medroxyprogesterone injecti
ons also receive timely Papanicolaou testing.