Suchergebnisse

There is a heavy burden of cervical cancer in China. Although the Chinese government provides free cervical cancer screening for rural women aged 35 to 59 years, the screening rate remains low even in the more developed regions of eastern China. This study aimed to assess knowledge and attitudes about cervical cancer and its screening among rural women aged 30 to 65 years in eastern China. A cross-sectional study was conducted in four counties of Jining Prefecture in Shandong Province during August 2015. In total, 420 rural women were randomly recruited. Each woman participated in a face-to-face interview in which a questionnaire was administered by a trained interviewer. A total of 405 rural women (mean age 49 years old) were included in the final study. Among them, 210 (51.9%) participants had high knowledge levels. An overwhelming majority, 389 (96.0%) expressed positive attitudes, whilst only 258 (63.7%) had undergone screening for cervical cancer. Related knowledge was higher amongst the screened group relative to the unscreened group. Age, education and income were significantly associated with a higher knowledge level. Education was the only significant factor associated with a positive attitude. In addition, women who were older, or who had received a formal education were more likely to participate in cervical cancer screening. The knowledge of cervical cancer among rural women in eastern China was found to be poor, and the screening uptake was not high albeit a free cervical cancer screening program was provided. Government led initiatives to improve public awareness, knowledge, and participation in cervical cancer screening programs would likely be highly beneficial in reducing cervical cancer incidence and mortality for rural women. ; Tongtong Liu, Shunping Li, Julie Ratcliffe and Gang Chen

The Australian Government has recently committed to major policy reform in aged care, with the widespread introduction of consumer directed care (CDC) in community care. The main aims of this study were to assess the impact of CDC on the quality of life of older Australians. Quality of life was assessed using the EuroQoL 5 dimensions 5 level (EQ-5D-5L) and the older people-specific capability index (ICECAP-O). The relationships between quality of life, length of time receiving CDC and socio-demographic characteristics were examined using descriptive statistical and multivariate regression analyses. 484 older people were approached of whom 150 (31%) consented to participate. Mean quality of life scores were 0.56 (sd=0.26) and 0.76 (sd=0.17) according to the EQ-5D-5L and the ICECAP-O respectively. Sub-group analysis revealed slightly higher quality of life scores for both instruments for those in receipt of CDC for ≤12 months [0.57 (0.25) and 0.78 (0.15)] compared to >12 months [0.54 (0.25) and 0.72 (0.18)]. However these differences were not found to be statistically significant. Although little variation was found overall in quality of life outcomes according to the length of exposure to CDC for either the EQ-5D-5L or ICECAP-O, analysis at the dimension level suggested that those with a longer period of exposure had stronger capability in being able to do things that made them feel valued. These cross-sectional results should be interpreted with caution and longitudinal follow up is needed to facilitate a detailed examination of the relationship between CDC and its longer-term influences on quality of life.