Outcome of Educational Programme on Cervical Cancer Risk Perception and Screening Intention among Market Women in Ibadan, Oyo State (Published)
Cervical cancer remains a major public health challenge in low- and middle-income countries, where poor awareness, low risk perception, and limited screening uptake contribute significantly to its burden. This study assessed the outcome of an educational programme on cervical cancer risk perception and screening intention among market women in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. A quasi-experimental pre-test and post-test design was adopted, involving 184 participants selected through multistage sampling and assigned to intervention and control groups. Data were collected using a validated semi-structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics at a 0.05 level of significance. At baseline, participants in both groups demonstrated poor risk perception and low screening intention. Only 20.7% of the intervention group and 8.7% of the control group had ever undergone cervical cancer screening, while 27.2% and 29.3%, respectively, expressed intention to screen. Following the educational intervention, risk perception significantly improved in the intervention group, with mean scores increasing from 32.1±10.6 to 40.7±9.0 compared to 33.5±10.2 in the control group (t=5.305, p=0.0001). Similarly, screening intention increased from 27.2% to 65.2% in the intervention group, compared to a marginal rise from 29.3% to 31.5% in the control group (p=0.0001). Ignorance was identified as the major barrier to screening uptake. The study concludes that educational intervention is effective in improving cervical cancer risk perception and screening intention among market women.
Keywords: Educational intervention, Market women, Screening intention, cervical cancer, risk perception