Perceived susceptibility, and cervical cancer screening benefits and barriers in malaysian women visiting outpatient clinics.
OBJECTIVE
A main reason for increasing incidence of cervical cancer worldwide is the lack of regular cervical cancer screening. Coverage and uptake remain major challenges and it is crucial to determine the perceived susceptibility to cervical cancer, as well as the benefits of, and barriers to, cervical cancer screening among women.


METHODS
A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 369 women attending an outpatient centre in Malaysia and data were collected by administering a self-report questionnaire.


RESULTS
The majority of the participants (265, 71.8%) showed good level of perception of their susceptibility to cervical cancer. Almost all responded positively to four statements about the perceived benefits of cervical cancer screening (agree, 23.1% or strongly agree, 52.5%), whereas negative responses were received from most of the participants (agree, 29.9%or strongly agree, 14.6 %) about the eleven statements on perceived barriers. Significant associations were observed between age and perceived susceptibility(x2=9.030, p=0.029); between employment status (p<0.001) as well as ethnicity and perceived benefits (p<0.05 [P=0.003]); and between education and perceived barriers to cervical cancer screening (p<0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
Perceived susceptibility, including knowledge levels and personal risk assessment, should be emphasized through education and awareness campaigns to improve uptake of cervical cancer screening in Malaysia.
Department of Nursing Sience, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia E-mail : pathmawathi@um.edu.my.
Pryma
P
Baskaran
Pathmawathi
P
Subramanian
Rasnah Abdul
RA
Rahman
Wong Li
WL
Ping
Nur Aishah
NA
Mohd Taib
Roshaslina
R
Rosli
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D010465:Perception; D011379:Prognosis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D014626:Vaginal Smears; D055815:Young Adult