Women with learning disability and uptake of screening: audit of screening uptake before and after one to one counselling

Abstract

This study investigates the breast and cervical screening status of women with moderate to severe learning disability and whether uptake could be improved by one to one counselling. An audit of screening uptake of women in contact with the National Health Service (NHS) learning disability service within the eligible age groups for breast and cervical screening before and after one to one counselling by a learning disability team nurse. Of the eligible 48 women, 37 (77 per cent) had undergone breast screening indicating that uptake was excellent and comparable to the average national and local uptake. As for cervical screening, of the 160 women who were identified as eligible and were contactable, only 26 (16 per cent) were having regular smear tests. At the end of the project, which involved one to one counselling by the nurses to encourage uptake, nine additional women underwent smear tests bringing the uptake rate to 22 per cent. For the remaining 96 women (60 per cent) the reasons at the time for non-uptake were recognized as appropriate. Although the uptake of breast screening was found to be good, cervical screening uptake for women with learning disability was low and remained low after a supportive intervention designed to increase uptake. The greater acceptability of breast screening in women with moderate to severe learning disability compared to cervical screening has been confirmed.