Paper
Wednesday, 19 July 2006
This presentation is part of : Health Issues for Adult Women
Raising Awareness and Free Screening Improves Cervical Cancer Screening Among Economically Disadvantaged Lebanese/Armenian Women
Mary Arevian, MPH, RN, BSN, Nursing and Health sciences, School of Nursing, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon and Samar Noureddine, PhD, RN, School of Nursing, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Hamra, Lebanon.
Learning Objective #1: Evaluate the impact of an intervention program for low socioeconomic group of women about cervical cancer detection and prevention based on identification of needs.
Learning Objective #2: Raise awareness among nurses for the need of continuous research in the field.
Background: Early detection of cervical cancer through screening is known to reduce morbidity and mortality significantly. It is important that women appreciate the benefits of cervical screening so they practice it regularly. Aim: To examine the impact of an intervention program on knowledge, attitude and practice of cervical screening in a population of Lebanese/Armenian women. Design: Cross sectional quasi experimental post test survey, following a year long intervention program. Sample: One hundred and seventy six women. Intervention: Educational classes, media messages and free screening. Instrument: Self -administered questionnaire. Results: Knowledge of women with intervention was higher than those without (p < 0.05). Practice rate increased, though not significantly, between the intervention and comparison groups. No difference in attitude was noted. Conclusion: The findings were encouraging as a first step. The educational program and the free screening should continue for poor women. Further research is needed to explore the attitudes hindering practice of cervical screening to develop appropriate interventions.

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