Result letters delivered within 14 days
Updated 25 May 2022
Applies to England
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/be-clear-on-cancer-first-national-cervical-screening-saves-lives-campaign/result-letters-delivered-within-14-days
This is one of a series of summaries produced for the campaign, each focusing on a different evaluation measure (referred to as a metric) which reflects a key point in the patient pathway. These metrics should not be considered in isolation. Please refer to the considerations when interpreting these results.
Main findings
The first national ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’ campaign appears to have had a short-term impact on the number of screening result letters delivered within 14 days of the test being taken.
Background
This metric considers whether the ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’ campaign had an impact on the number of cervical screening result letters delivered within 14 days of the test being taken.
Result letters are issued by a national call and recall administration service for cervical screening tests taken in primary care and sexual health.
Women should receive their result letter within 14 days from date of the sample being taken. It is essential that women receive the results of screening in a timely manner to make sure those who require further tests and those who do not are informed at the earliest opportunity.
A decrease in the percentage of result letters delivered within 14 days may show that the campaign has improved the response of individuals to their cervical screening invitations, particularly those who had delayed attending.
Methods
The analysis period was March to June 2019. Data for this period was compared to the same months in 2018. Further information on the methodology used for the campaign analysis is available.
The campaign ran in March and April 2019. However, result letters could be delayed if the programme is busy as reporting by laboratories may be delayed.
For this reason, the analysis also looked at May and June 2019 which should be after any short-term campaign effect.
The percentage of letters received within 14 days is a calculated value. The 14 days runs from the date the screening test is taken. The end point is calculated from the date the result is posted based on the method of posting (first class, second class or business class)
Screening result letters
These are letters issued by the call and recall administration service with the result of an individual’s screening test.
Figure 1 below compares the proportion of result letters received within 14 days for the same quarters in the years 2018 and 2019.
Figure 1: Percentage of results received within 14 days, for years 2018 and 2019
| Year | Year 2018 | Year 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| March | 33.1% | 33.0% |
| April | 32.8% | 23.2% |
| May | 36.3% | 26.3% |
| June | 41.5% | 33.4% |
The data show that:
- in March, there was a non-significant -0.1% decrease from 33.1% in 2018 to 33.0% in 2019 (p=0.57)
- in April, there was a significant -9.6% decrease from 32.8% in 2018 to 23.2% in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in May, there was a significant -10.0% decrease from 36.3% in 2018 to 26.3% in 2019 (p<0.001)
- in June, there was a significant -8.2% decrease from 41.5% in 2018 to 33.4% in 2019 (p<0.001)
The percentage of result received within 14 days has historically decreased in the first third of the year. It saw a particular dip during the campaign but has returned to trend in the months after the campaign.
Figure 2: Percentage of results received within 14 days, between April 2017 and March 2020
The dotted line shows the linear trend for results received within 14 days over this time.
The line graph above shows an overall increase from 40.6% for April 2017 to 46.4% for March 2020. The highest point of the line is 78.5% for January 2018. The lowest point of the line is 23.2% for April 2019.
Conclusions
There was a statistically significant decrease in the percentage received within 14 days during and after the campaign.
This is likely to be as a result of the increased number of individuals attending for screening during the campaign.
The ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’ campaign appears to have had an impact on the number of cervical screening result letters.
Get advice on the signs and symptoms of cancer from the NHS website. You can also find out more about the evaluation of Be Clear on Cancer campaigns.