The worst cervical cancer campaign ever...

We’re not talking about the article. We’re talking about the big display in the station, and the reaction of women who see it.

I said article. The article linked (maybe you didnt read past the ad board photo?)

Cervical cancer is a cancer that’s found anywhere in the cervix and mostly affects women and people with cervixes under the age of 45
Clearly uses the word women.

Here. This is the wording.

Almost 1 in 3 people aged 25-49 in the North West don’t attend their cervical screening. Yet our cervical cancer rates are 19% higher than the rest of England. Screening helps lower your chances of getting cervical cancer. That’s why it's so important to not leave your risk of developing cervical cancer to chance.

Please* *point out the word female or woman.

It might get people talking, but will it get women booking?

This is obviously aimed at women who are putting off going for a smear test, maybe because of embarrassment, sexual trauma, fear of pain, etc.

So is telling a rape or sexual assault victim who is suffering trauma to 'not keep your legs crossed' really going to encourage her to book an appointment? Is a woman who suffers from vaginismus suddenly going to feel at ease because she's told it's as simple as just 'open yer legs'?

I think not.

There are many things that are very very wrong with that campaign.

One of them is that the installation appears to be in a railway station concourse. Public transport is too often a hostile and intimidating environment for women and girls in which they are at risk of sexual harassment. And the absolute geniuses at cancer research think that displaying facsimiles of women’s naked legs, on a station concourse, which will have stag dos, football fans, and your common or garden perves passing through, is just the perfect way to make women safer?

But I’m sure which ever marketing guru came up with that thinks it’ll do wonders for their CV.

I suggest you read the actual sign. The one you are applauding. If I missed the word women on that sign, please highlight it on the photo.

Or didn’t you actually read the sign in the photo. It is easy enough to find and increase to read. Maybe you should do that before making comments of support.

Using language that doesn’t make clear that this is a female only health issue (in plain English)
The article clearly says the word women.
That women should go for a smear.

No! No! Wims… we are just speaking from being prudish and not appreciative of such a modern empowering ad campaign!

Frankly, what idiot came up with this campaign? They need to find a new career.

It is tasteless, grossly offensive and likely to have the opposite effect to that intended. Just horrible.

You really think this will actually encourage anyone?

Would the people who think ‘oh it’s fine so long as it gets people talking’ be equally happy about prostate-related campaigns making reference to ‘getting it up’ or the fun of a finger up the bum on the same basis?

Or is it just women who need to be told to spread their legs?

Oh but it's okay <hollow laugh> They're being ever so inclusive by providing three shades of legs 😏

Three shades of plastic, barbie, one size, sexualised legs.

They'd have more of a chance if they actually ran training and awareness campaigns for health care professionals about consent-based practice and how to make a smear test a less uncomfortable and downright painful thing for a significant number of women.

But that wouldn't be sexy marketing 🤐

This.

It needs repeating often.

This is supposed to be targeting community groups with poor take up of smear tests. I expect all those who are decreeing that this is doing a great job of communicating are NOT the target market that is not already attending their smear tests. It is community groups that include those with language difficulties. Using language that doesn’t make clear that this is a female only health issue (in plain English) and using communication devices that are polarising in using sexual innuendo is spectacularly failing those communities.

@MissLucyEyelesbarrow you misread me- ads can and should target those groups. Mainstream ads should not be diluted with wishywashy inclusive unclear language.

and separately, the ‘keep ‘em crossed’ is definitely inferring women should sleep around, and should have smear tests. I object to the inference that women ‘should’ have sex in the same way they should have a health screen.

It’s coercive.

That’s quite grim.

Had you noticed that other women aren't feeling all positive about it and some here are saying that it's actively putting them off?

Of course it's great that it works for you. But it's kind of an all women thing.

Great.

which communities in the North West do you think is NOT attending their scans? Do you think you’re representative of those communities?

Yet they then discuss that certain communities are not doing the screening. It is the North West- which community would this be? And do you think those communities will respond to this absolute mess of a communication campaign?

This is a huge failure in communication.

I disagree... people are taking pictures of it and talking about cervical screening on a predominantly female based forum so seems to be getting the message across and hopefully some ladies will go for their smear test as a result of it

I agree with this.
It's got people talking, it's raising awareness by doing so, and it doesn't offend me, if it raises awareness that's a good thing in my eyes.

The messages I get from this campaign are
a) that they think women are choosing not to have sex because they don’t want smear tests,
b) that their statistics are fucked
& c) that if I went for a smear test in the north west I would have no guarantee that it would be done by an actual woman.

I have had a similar experience in the past. They only release appointments a month ahead, which book up fast. They don't do smears everyday, they almost never have appointments outside core office hours. You have to work around your cycle on top of this. After several calls to try and arrange an appointment I gave up.

I have since had one but it was very overdue and involved travelling out of area to some clinic that I suspect was really aimed at disadvantaged women living locally but had better availability

It is impossible to book a smear test at my drs. Can't book over the phone, can't book online, only on certain days but the info is not online so I don't know what days - I have to fill out a form (not designed for the purpose) on the nhs app and then I get an appointment (which is usually smack bang in the middle of something important for work so gets cancelled).

Yet I get a text a month to "remind" me to book. I bought a hpv test kit from Superdrug in the end.

It's a horrible, horrible campaign. It emphasises the sexual nature of opening your legs, whereas what you want as a woman thinking about smears is to de-sexualise it - to think of it as a simple, necessary medical procedure.

It reminds me of that other awful campaign: "Don't be a diva, it's only a beaver."

Furthermore, they haven't put any effort into finding out why women don't have smears, which I suspect in many cases is because women find it painful or traumatising.

I can only imagine this ad will put women off having a smear, rather than making them think it's a good idea.

Nobody’s saying that. The poster was just pointing out that ‘people’ is fine in this case.

This

My engagement with this service rests entirely upon my ability to specify a female HCP and for her to be able to care for a patient with a trauma history. It's not because I don't know about it.

Women with additional needs and women with English as an additional language - especially those without a regular GP - are also at risk of not taking up the smear offer. A sexualised innuendo of a campaign is not going to reach or encourage either of those groups.