Health extension workers-led education enhances reproductive-age women’s knowledge and uptake of cervical cancer screening in Dabat district, Ethiopia 2023: Effectiveness study
1
Women and Family Health, University of Gondar, College of Medicine and Health Sciences,, Gondar, Ethiopia
Popul. Med. 2026;8(Supplement Supplement 1):A1567
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Cervical cancer is a public health concern, and screening could be done to detect premalignant lesions and ensure proper management is implemented early to prevent cervical cancer. Screening uptake is low due to a variety of determinants. It would be increased by using theory-based, framework-based, model-based, and culturally tailored health extension worker-led education implementation strategies. However, no previous study in Ethiopia.
OBJECTIVE:
Aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of health extension worker-led education on reproductive women’s attitudes, knowledge, and uptake of cervical cancer screening in Dabat District, Ethiopia, 2023.
METHODS:
The study included 760 reproductive age women (389 pre-and-371post-intervention quasi-experimental design) and ran from 21, December to 30 October 2023. Data collectors, supervisors, and interventionists were all trained during the project. A valid and reliable questionnaire was used. The intervention lasted four months, with one to two hours of community-based education provided to four urban and four rural kebeles. We used Epi-data version-7 software to code, enter, clean data, and Stata version-14 software for analysis. McNamara's test was used with a P-value less than 0.05 to compare the proportion change between the pre- and post-intervention.
RESULTS:
The study participants had an average age of 36.5 years, with a SD of +5 years. The proportion of women with good knowledge was significantly increased from 49.10 to 57.95% by the intervention (P-value=0.028). The proportion of cervical screening uptake was significantly improved from 7.20 to 32.88% (P-value<0.001). Various sociodemographic and reproductive health variables were predictors with outcomes. Conclusion and Recommendation: Health extension worker-led education was effective in increasing knowledge and uptake of cervical cancer screening. It could add to the body of knowledge and guide policymakers and programmers in Ethiopia. Considering the context and local stakeholders is vital. The finding revealed greenlights that should be sustained and scale-up to other parts of Ethiopia.
Cervical cancer is a public health concern, and screening could be done to detect premalignant lesions and ensure proper management is implemented early to prevent cervical cancer. Screening uptake is low due to a variety of determinants. It would be increased by using theory-based, framework-based, model-based, and culturally tailored health extension worker-led education implementation strategies. However, no previous study in Ethiopia.
OBJECTIVE:
Aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of health extension worker-led education on reproductive women’s attitudes, knowledge, and uptake of cervical cancer screening in Dabat District, Ethiopia, 2023.
METHODS:
The study included 760 reproductive age women (389 pre-and-371post-intervention quasi-experimental design) and ran from 21, December to 30 October 2023. Data collectors, supervisors, and interventionists were all trained during the project. A valid and reliable questionnaire was used. The intervention lasted four months, with one to two hours of community-based education provided to four urban and four rural kebeles. We used Epi-data version-7 software to code, enter, clean data, and Stata version-14 software for analysis. McNamara's test was used with a P-value less than 0.05 to compare the proportion change between the pre- and post-intervention.
RESULTS:
The study participants had an average age of 36.5 years, with a SD of +5 years. The proportion of women with good knowledge was significantly increased from 49.10 to 57.95% by the intervention (P-value=0.028). The proportion of cervical screening uptake was significantly improved from 7.20 to 32.88% (P-value<0.001). Various sociodemographic and reproductive health variables were predictors with outcomes. Conclusion and Recommendation: Health extension worker-led education was effective in increasing knowledge and uptake of cervical cancer screening. It could add to the body of knowledge and guide policymakers and programmers in Ethiopia. Considering the context and local stakeholders is vital. The finding revealed greenlights that should be sustained and scale-up to other parts of Ethiopia.
| eISSN: | 2654-1459 |
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