Awareness and Knowledge of HPV, HPV Vaccination, and Cervical Cancer among an Indigenous Caribbean Community

Zachary Claude Warner, Brandon Reid, Priscilla Auguste, Winnie Joseph, Deanna Kepka and Echo Lyn Warner
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Zachary Claude Warner: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Arizona, 1501 N Campbell Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA
Brandon Reid: Department of Family Medicine, University of Kansas, 138 N Santa Fe Ave, Salina, KS 67401, USA
Priscilla Auguste: Department of Family Medicine, University of Arkansas for Health Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA
Winnie Joseph: Salybia Health Clinic, Saint David Parish, Bataka 00109, Dominica
Deanna Kepka: College of Nursing, University of Utah, 10 South 2000 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
Echo Lyn Warner: College of Nursing, University of Utah, 10 South 2000 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-10

Abstract: Caribbean women experience a cervical cancer incidence rate that is three times higher than that among their North American counterparts. In this study, we performed a needs assessment of the knowledge and awareness of HPV, HPV vaccination, and cervical cancer and receipt of cervical cancer screening among an indigenous Caribbean community. We purposively recruited individuals aged ≥18 from a community health care clinic ( n = 58) to complete a 57-item structured interview including items on demographics, cancer history, knowledge and awareness of HPV, HPV vaccines, cervical cancer, and cervical cancer screening. Participants’ mean age was 47.1 years (SD: 14.4). Most were female (74.1%), were married/partnered (51.7%), had primary education (63.8%), and identified as Kalinago (72.4%). Whereas 79.5% had heard of cervical cancer, few had heard of HPV (19.6%) or the HPV vaccine (21.8%). Among those who knew someone with cancer, 90.9% had heard of the HPV vaccine, compared with only 9.1% of those who did not know anyone with cancer ( p = 0.02). Access to HPV vaccination is an immediate, cost-effective cancer prevention priority for reducing the disproportionate burden of HPV-related cancers, particularly cervical cancer, in the Caribbean. We recommend culturally targeted education interventions to improve knowledge about HPV vaccination and the link between HPV and cervical cancer.

Keywords: women’s health; Caribbean region; cervical cancer; global health; health beliefs; HPV; HPV vaccine; indigenous peoples; knowledge (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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