Open Access‘I do not need to… I do not want to… I do not give it priority…’– why women choose not to attend cervical cancer screening
Author(s) -
Oscarsson Marie G.,
Wijma Barbro E.,
Benzein Eva G.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
health expectations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.314
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1369-7625
pISSN - 1369-6513
DOI - 10.1111/j.1369-7625.2007.00478.x
Subject(s) - feeling , attendance , nonprobability sampling , cervical cancer , cervical screening , qualitative research , psychology , service (business) , medicine , health professionals , nursing , health care , family medicine , social psychology , cancer , population , sociology , social science , economy , environmental health , economics , economic growth
Objective To describe and interpret why women with no cervical smear taken during the previous 5 years choose not to attend a cervical cancer screening (CCS) programme. Background CCS programme is a service for early detection of cervical cancer. Today, some women choose not to attend the programme. Design Data were collected by tape‐recorded interviews and analysed by qualitative inductive content analysis. Setting and participants Purposive sample of 14 women in southeast Sweden, who had chosen not to attend CCS during the previous 5 years. Findings The following themes were revealed: I do not need to…, I do not want to… and I do not give it priority…. The women had a positive attitude to CCS but as long as they felt healthy, they chose not to attend. A negative body image, low self‐esteem, feelings of discomfort when confronted with the gynaecological examination and fear of the results also influenced their non‐attendance. The women prioritized more important things in life and reported various degrees of lack of trust in health‐care. Conclusion Women’s choice not to attend CCS were complex and influenced by present and earlier intra‐ and inter‐personal circumstances. They had a positive attitude to CCS, but other things in life were more important. Health‐care professionals have to facilitate a co‐operative discussion with the women in order to contribute to a mutual understanding for the perspectives of the women and the professionals.