Heena Humariya, Durrani Sajid, AlFayyad Isamme, Riaz Muhammad, Tabasim Rabeena, Parvez Gazi, Abu-Shaheen Amani
Research Center, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Comprehensive Cancer Center, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
J Oncol. 2019 Oct 17;2019:5423130. doi: 10.1155/2019/5423130. eCollection 2019.
Cervical cancer is a potentially preventable disease if appropriate screening and prophylactic strategies are employed. However, lack of knowledge and awareness can result in underutilization of the preventive strategies. Healthcare professionals with adequate knowledge play a huge role in influencing the beliefs and practices of the general public in a positive way. We assessed the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of cervical cancer and screening amongst female healthcare professionals at King Fahad Medical City (KFMC), Saudi Arabia.
We conducted a cross-sectional study on female healthcare professionals at KFMC. Data were collected using a predesigned, tested, and self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire included specific sections to test the participants' knowledge, attitude, and practices related to cervical cancer and its screening. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics.
Data from 395 participants were included in the final analysis. The majority of the study participants were nurses ( = 261, 66.1%). The mean age of the participants was 34.7 years and 239 (60.5%) participants were married. Only 16 (4.0%) participants appeared to have good level knowledge of cervical cancer (in terms of risk factors, vulnerability, signs and symptoms, ways of prevention, and ways of screening) and 58 (14.7%) participants had fair level knowledge. A total of 343 (86.8%) participants believed that Pap smear test is a useful test for the detection of cervical cancer and 103 (26.2%) participants had undergone Pap smear testing.
Our study population showed poor knowledge of cervical cancer as a disease. The participants had a fair knowledge of Pap smear testing, but only a quarter of the cohort had undergone testing themselves. This study highlights the need for formal educational programs for the healthcare workers at KFMC specifically to improve their knowledge regarding the risk factors and early signs and symptoms of cervical cancer.
如果采用适当的筛查和预防策略，宫颈癌是一种潜在可预防的疾病。然而，知识和意识的缺乏可能导致预防策略未得到充分利用。具备足够知识的医疗保健专业人员在以积极方式影响公众的观念和行为方面发挥着巨大作用。我们评估了沙特阿拉伯法赫德国王医疗城（KFMC）女性医疗保健专业人员对宫颈癌及筛查的知识、态度和行为。
我们对KFMC的女性医疗保健专业人员进行了一项横断面研究。使用预先设计、经过测试且为自填式的问卷收集数据。问卷包括特定部分，以测试参与者对宫颈癌及其筛查的知识、态度和行为。使用描述性统计进行数据分析。
最终分析纳入了395名参与者的数据。大多数研究参与者是护士（n = 261，66.1%）。参与者的平均年龄为34.7岁，239名（60.5%）参与者已婚。只有16名（4.0%）参与者似乎对宫颈癌有良好的知识水平（在风险因素、易感性、体征和症状、预防方法和筛查方法方面），58名（14.7%）参与者有中等知识水平。共有343名（86.8%）参与者认为巴氏涂片检查是检测宫颈癌的有用检查，103名（26.2%）参与者接受过巴氏涂片检查。
我们的研究人群对宫颈癌这种疾病的知识了解不足。参与者对巴氏涂片检查有一定了解，但只有四分之一的队列进行过该项检查。本研究强调了为KFMC的医护人员开展正规教育项目的必要性，特别是要提高他们对宫颈癌风险因素和早期体征及症状的认识。
