Women’s Understanding of the Term ‘Pap Smear’

To assess the understanding of the term ‘Pap smear’ among women across the entire adult lifespan after recent changes to the guidelines on cervical cancer screening. Women attending the Obstetrics and Gynecology clinic at a large safety net teaching hospital in a Midwestern city were provided one of two versions of a confidential and anonymous survey to complete. The difference between the two versions was the way the primary research question was worded. There were 174 participants ranging in age from 15 to 69 (mean = 33.9) years. Of the 73 women who completed version A of the survey, 74 % were able to identify at least one correct descriptor for the term ‘Pap smear.’ Women who could identify at least one correct descriptor for the term ‘Pap smear’ were on average older than those who could not (mean = 36.9 vs. 28.7 years; p = 0.012). Of the 94 patients completing survey version B, 67 % could not differentiate a pelvic exam from a Pap smear. There was no association between age and ability to differentiate a pelvic exam from a Pap smear. The majority of women cannot distinguish a Pap smear from a pelvic exam. The unexpected finding of less understanding among younger women prompts a need for further research and invites discussion of whether more cervical cancer prevention education, with more emphasis on HPV vaccines in recent years, has neglected the importance of Pap smears—which is beginning to show up in knowledge of younger women. Both these findings suggest a need for increased patient education during female preventive health clinic visits.