Problem: Lifestyle changes and a corresponding increase in non-communicable diseases, non-communicable disease risk factors, substance abuse, and decreased mental health1 in the Republic of Palau. A population-based household survey conducted by the Ministry of Health revealed that 51% of non-Palauan women living in Palau were not being screened for cervical cancer.2
1United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2016 Transnational Organized Crime in the Pacific: A Threat Assessment. Retrieved November 4, 2021.
2Palau Hybrid Survey Final Report. 2017. http://www.palauhealth.org/MOHpages/MOHReports1.aspx
PSE Change Solution: To address the disparity in cervical cancer screening rates between Palauan and Filipino women, the Ministry of Health decided to develop a small media health communications campaign to promote cervical cancer screening among Filipino women. Steps in this process included partnering with the Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Program, community health centers, and the Belau Foreign Spouse Society (BFSS), an organization of Filipino women married to Palauan men; developing a survey to further understand Filipino women’s knowledge, attitudes, and behavior around cervical cancer screening; training partners to administer the survey and using the results to develop focus group questions; and developing messaging that addresses the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of cervical cancer screening identified by the survey and focus group results. These incremental steps provided relevant data for use in developing key messages and small media.
Resources to Support Similar Evidence-Based Initiatives
The Community Guide:
• Cancer Screening: Small Media Targeting Clients Cervical Cancer
Evidence-Based Cancer Control Programs: