HPV testing: a mixed-method approach to understand why women prefer self-collection in a middle-income country
Arrossi, Silvina, Ramos, Silvina, Straw, Cecilia, Thouyaret, Laura and Orellana, Liliana 2016, HPV testing: a mixed-method approach to understand why women prefer self-collection in a middle-income country, BMC Public Health, vol. 16, Article number: 832, pp. 1-11, doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-3474-2.
BACKGROUND: HPV test self-collection has been shown to reduce barriers to cervical screening and increase uptake. However, little is known about women's preferences when given the choice between self-collected and clinician-collected tests. This paper aims to describe experiences with HPV self-collection among women in Jujuy, the first Argentinean province to have introduced HPV testing as the primary screening method, provided free of cost in all public health centers.
METHODS: Between July and December 2012, data on acceptability of HPV self-collection and several social variables including past screening were collected from 2616 self-collection accepters and 433 non-accepters, and were analyzed using multivariate regression. In addition, in-depth interviews (n = 30) and 2 focus groups were carried out and analyzed using thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Quantitative findings indicate that main reasons for choosing self-collection are those reducing barriers related to women's roles of responsibility for domestic work and work/family organization, and to health care services' organization. No social variables were significantly associated with acceptability. Among those who preferred clinician-collection, the main reasons were trust in health professionals and fear of hurting themselves. Qualitative findings also showed that self-collection allows women to overcome barriers related to the health system (i.e. long wait times), without sacrificing time devoted to work/domestic responsibilities.
CONCLUSIONS: Findings have implications for self-collection recommendations, as they show it is the preferred method when women are given the choice, even if they are not screening non-attenders. Findings also highlight the importance of incorporating women's needs/preferences in HPV screening recommendations.
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