Abstract
Background: Cervical carcinoma is a preventable women killer disease and the knowledge and utilization of cervical screening is very important in its prevention. Aims: The aim is to determine the knowledge, attitude and practice of JUTH female health workers to cervical screening, as well as the role of the gynaecologist in referral for screening tests. Study design and Methods : A cross-sectional study of the female health workers in JUTH was carried out using a stratified sampling technique and the same proportion of the various cadres were sampled using a structured questionnaire, and the results were analysed. Results: A total of 200 women were recruited, and 93.5% said they knew about Pap smear but only 56.5% knew what it was actually meant for and 19% of the study had done Pap smear in the past. There was no reason given in 59% of the subjects for not carrying out a Pap smear, while 19.5% gave non physician referral as reason. Among the 38 women who had had a Pap smear, 36.8% had done it more than 2 years previously. A total of 104 women visited gynaecologists at various times, but only 15.4% were asked to have a Pap smear. Conclusion: The knowledge and utilization of Pap smear is poor and the gynaecologists have many missed opportunities for Opportunistic Pap smear. Keywords: Female health worker, gynaecologist, Pap smear, cervical screening.
Highlights
Force (USPSTF) and the American Cancer Society (ACS) recommend testing every three years for women ages 21-65; routine cervical cancer screening for women under 21 and over 65 is no longer recommended
The study has revealed some gaps in the utilization of cervical screening among all cadres of female health workers in JUTH which would suggest that this would be worse among the general populace
Health education and counseling will help to improve utilization of cervical screening, as Pap smear appears to be unpopular among these health workers
Summary
Many of the women die as young mothers[11]; and it is known that more than 80% of cervical cancer cases occurring in developing countries, which collectively have only 5% of global cancer resources.[12]. Cervical cancer is probably the only reproductive malignancy that may be detected in its preinvasive stage by regular cytological screening[1,3,7,14,15] since it has recognized premalignant lesions, which may persist for years before the invasive cancer develops[3,9,12,13]. The accessibility of the cervix has made investigation for intraepithelial lesions very feasible in developed countries [1,5] and studies have shown that three out of four women who developed cervical cancer each year have never had a pap smear or did not have it as recommended.[8]. Cervical carcinoma is a preventable women killer disease and the knowledge and utilization of cervical screening is very important in its prevention
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