Acceptability of self-collected vaginal swabs and point-of-care testing for sexually transmitted and genital infections among pregnant women in Papua New Guinea.
Glob Public Health
; 19(1): 2381685, 2024 01.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39052956
ABSTRACT
The self-collection of vaginal swabs and point-of-care testing and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is reported from several low-and middle-income countries. However, the reporting on women's experiences of self-collection and same-day testing and treatment of STIs is less well described. In this paper, we present the acceptability of self-collected vaginal swabs and point-of-care testing and treatment among pregnant women enrolled in a clinical trial (Women and Newborn Trial of Antenatal Intervention and Management - WANTAIM) in Papua New Guinea. Semi-structured interviews were conducted among 54 women enrolled into WANTAIM to identify the acceptability of the test and treat approach. Analysis of qualitative data used deductive and inductive thematic analysis applying Sekhon, Cartwright and Francis' acceptability theoretical framework. Most women reported that they understood that the vaginal swab was to identify infections that may affect their unborn baby; however, some were unsure about the specific infections they were being tested for. Among women who tested positive for an STI, some were unsure what they had been treated for. Overall, the self-collection of vaginal swabs for STI testing during pregnancy was highly acceptable.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Patient Acceptance of Health Care
/
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Pregnancy
Language:
En
Journal:
Glob Public Health
Journal subject:
SAUDE PUBLICA
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country: