Knowledge and Uptake of Cervical Cancer Vaccine among Community Health Nurses in Takoradi, in the Western Region of Ghana

Abstract

Background: Cervical cancer is an important reproductive health problem for women in developing countries where it constitutes 13% of all female malignancies. It is the second most common cancer in women worldwide and 83 percent of the world’s 500,000 new cases and 85 percent of the 288,000 cervical cancer deaths occur in developing countries. Community health workers play an important role in educating the public on cervical cancer prevention strategies. The primary objective of the study is to assess the knowledge and barriers to the uptake of cervical cancer vaccination among Community Health Workers in Takoradi in the Western Region of Ghana. Methodology: A descriptive study design was adopted for the research work. The target population of this study was Community Health Workers within Takoradi. A semi-structured self-administered questionnaire was administered to eligible participants. The questionnaire was adopted from earlier research work with slight modifications, thereby ensuring its validity and reliability. The questionnaire had forty questions in four sections aimed at determining the knowledge, barriers and background factors associated with cervical cancer vaccination among community health workers in Takoradi. The study used systematic sampling to obtain data for the study. Result: Respondents who had had information on vaccination had it from different sources, with more than half (53.1%) reporting they got the information from the hospitals. The study showed that about 31.5% of the respondents were motivated to vaccinate because maintaining good health was important to them. Conclusions: Most of the respondents were aware of the deadly disease, however none of them reported having been vaccinated against it.