Zimbabwe (2013): Qualitative Segmentation Study on Cervical Cancer Screening Behaviors among Women aged 30 Years and above in Zimbabwe

The PSI Zimbabwe program seeks to promote cervical cancer screening behaviours through planning and implementation of screening programs at community level. Cervical cancer screening is a generally new service. Thus, raising knowledge and awareness, communicating the benefits and improving the availability of services is important to increase demand and uptake of services. However, very little is known about the existing barriers and facilitating factors. This study a imed to help answer numerous questions around the creation of appropriate communications for increased uptake of the promoted behaviour. Through this qualitative investigation, PSI/Zimbabwe sought to gain an in-depth understanding of knowledge levels on cervical cancer screening. The results of this study will inform a communication strategy that seeks to create awareness of the health problem and thereafter shape marketing plans for demand creation. An exclusively qualitative approach using in-depth interviews was adopted among women aged 30 - 49 years and women living with HIV of any age above 18 years. Twenty females over 30 years of age, and those of any age above 18 years if HIV positive, were purposively selected to participate in the study. Ten (10) of them had been previously screened using Visual inspection using acetic acid (VIA) at least once and ten (10) had never been screened before. Three (3) of those ever screened were HIV positive. Participants were drawn from Harare, Bulawayo, Chiredzi and Mazowe. Trained moderators/interviewers were involved in the recruitment study participants. Data analysis used the nine codes of the qualitative segmentation framework. Outputs of the study included a frequency intensity chart, code summaries and the dashboard