Earlier this year, we worked with Jo's Trust on
this guest post about barriers to getting a cervical smear as a disabled person.Today they’re releasing their research that has found that women
with physical disabilities and physically
debilitating symptoms as a result of a long term health condition are
struggling to attend, or even being denied access to, cervical screening.
You can find it at: www.jostrust.org.uk/invisible
We have found:
- Two thirds have said
they have been unable to attend cervical screening because of their
disability
- Half have not
attended due to a previous bad experience related to their disability or
worry about how people would react
- Stigma and prejudice is
prominent as 1 in 5 women have been assumed not to be sexually
active by their GP or nurse.
We are calling for GP practices to review their
policies and practice, along with training and inspections to address
adjustments for women. We are also calling for more research to be conducted in
order to look at the most effective way to offer cervical screening to this
group of women.
