Metrics details. Participation in Human Papillomavirus HPV vaccination and Papanicolaou Screening Pap smears is low among ethnic minorities in the Netherlands and hardly any information is available about the cervical cancer prevention methods of Somali women living in the diaspora.
This qualitative study, based on the Health Belief Model HBM and an intersectionality-based framework, explores the perceptions of Somali women living in the Netherlands regarding measures to prevent cervical cancer. Two natural group discussions have been conducted with 12 and 14 Somali mothers aged 23—66 years. The collected data has been analyzed thematically for content. In this study, we have identified perceived barriers to the use of preventive measures across three major themes: 1 Somali women and preventive healthcare; 2 Language, knowledge, and negotiating decisions; and 3 Sexual standards, culture, and religion.
Many issues have been identified across these themes, e. Current measures in the Netherlands to prevent women from developing cervical cancer hardly reach Somali women because these women perceive these kinds of preventative measures as not personally relevant.
Dutch education strategies about cervical cancer deviate from ways of exchanging information within the Somali community. Teachers can provide culturally sensitive information to young Somali women in schools. For Somali mothers, oral education e.
An intersectional approach, grounded in the HBM, is recommended to promote equal access to preventive health care for Somali women. Since , prevention of cervical cancer in the Netherlands consists of two measures: first, the Papanicolaou Screening Pap smear , for which all women aged 30 to 60 years receive an invitation every 5 years, is free of charge [ 1 ]. The second measure - the Human Papillomavirus HPV vaccination - was introduced in , after the bivalent vaccine Cervarix targeting HPV 16 and 18 became available [ 2 ].
