Knowledge and practice of cervical cancer screening among teacher trainees in colleges of education in Ashanti Region, Ghana

Abstract

The study's objective was to evaluate the teacher training colleges for education in Ghana's Ashanti Region regarding their knowledge, attitudes, and practices on screening for cervical cancer. A descriptive survey design was used to carry out the survey. A stratified and practical sampling methods were used to choose 582 study participants from a variety of units who completed a series of questionaires. To keep the study on track, five research questions were developed. The researcher designed a questionnaire to be used as a data collection tool. The bulk of survey participants had extensive knowledge of cervical cancer. It was evident that most of the respondents responded negatively when asked whether they had ever had cervical cancer screening. The only item on which respondents were incorrect was their understanding of the availability of cervical cancer vaccinations centers in Ghana. The study discovered that access to screening programmes, fear of positive results, financial cost, and trouble finding a doctor were the biggest barriers to cervical cancer screening. Some other significant barriers were the need for reminders and a male doctor conducting the screening. Since cervical cancer screening was low, it was recommended that the Ministry of Health and authorities of Colleges of Education encourage female teacher trainees to perform cervical cancer screening. The health unit in Colleges of Education should organise intermittent seminars, workshops, and cervical cancer screening outreaches where specific days can be set aside for teacher trainees to go for screening.