Abstract

AIM: To examine the awareness of female health employees (doctors, nurses, medical secretaries, esc.) working at the Tepecik Teaching and Research Hospital(TERH) about cervical cancer and its risk factors. Additionally we tried to search the attitude and behavior about gynecologic examination and pap smear screening of gynecologic cancers. MATERIAL AND METHOD: This study is planned as sectional, descriptive and realised among the female health employees at TERH, along January 2010. Recently or previously sexually active and have no hysterectomy operation 316 participants were included. FINDINGS: Nearly one third of the 316 female health employee 110 (%34,8) had at least once have a pap smear screening, the rest 206 (%65,2) had none. Overall, 73 (%23,1) of the responder were under gynecologic screening and the 243 females (%76,9) had not. Higher rates of information about pap smear, cervix cancer and its risk factors or human papilloma virüs and its vaccine were detected among participants under gynecologic screening. CONCLUSION: Health employees should be informed well enough about the importance of screening because of their preventive role in health of the general population.