I have no words...

Women first and people with seems the least bad option clunky as it is.

@terffert

peevitude

brilliant!

I think this is a logical solution if you are a writer of such a leaflet, and you know that the leaflet will be read by gender critical people and gender ideologists, and your above-all-else concern is that everyone who needs a smear test should be addressed and told to get one. Two different interpretations:

GC: women and people with a cervix: only "women" is necessary, and is sufficient; "people with a cervix" is redundant (and perhaps offensive, because women aren't body parts, and we don't need reminding that if our cervix has been removed e.g. as part of major surgery, we no longer need to have it smeared)

GI: only "people with a cervix" is necessary, and is sufficient; "women" is redundant (and perhaps offensive, because there are some "women" in their terminology who have to remember they don't need a smear test, and may encounter embarrassment if they fail on this)

By contrast, if they went for "women" only, some GIs who need smears would feel excluded and out of peevitude might not attend (you might feel, and I might agree, that that's their lookout, but the NHS would still pay to treat their advanced cervical cancer); if they went for "people with a cervix" only, some GCs would feel peeved, probably not enough to not attend on the biased assumption that we're reasonable people who know where our interests lie, but more seriously, some people who aren't sure what a cervix is would be excluded.

I don't envy whoever worded this leaflet their job, but I think they did ok.

It’s still pandering. This is a medical issue - based on bodies. Human bodies.

The word ‘woman’ includes everyone who might need a smear test.
People are free to believe what they like, but the NHS should not be using language that legitimises their harmful nonsense.

'biological women' would suffice.

Yeah this. The only people who need a smear, are women. As soon as you term it 'women and people with a cervix' you have changed 'woman' from a descriptor of an adult human female, to one of a person who self describes at a woman (as you've also listed people with a cervix who don't self describe as a woman).

I know a lot of women are ok with additive language like this, as at least it now says women, instead of cervix havers or birthing bodies or any of that offensive crap. But that's such a low bar. I do not have 'woman' as an identity, I have it as a biological fact about me, and I didn't consent for that to be changed on literature from the National Health Service about a medical test only adult human females need. Not being totally erased isn't good enough, I want reality based language back in healthcare.

I just checked on the hse guidlines Ireland and it says 'young people with a cervix' or 'people with a cervix'...Woman not even mentioned at all. Are we living in an alternative reality or what.

I agree with Paperwalkandtalk who are all the people with a cervix if not women. The world is gone mad now, same with chest feeding instead of breast feeding.

OP I find it concerning when ideology makes its way into medical treatment (e.g. countries restricting abortion or contraception access for religious reasons rather than medical reasons or refusing to research and treat HIV because of homophobia) so I can understand why you would find this nonsensical.

Receiving letters like this also leaves me wondering what else the NHS does to appease ideologies which reduces my confidence in a medical system that can so easily be persuaded to lie about fundamental aspects of mammalian life on earth.

I get you - I assumed trans men!

I suppose the $64,000 question is, have any GPs/nurses etc found themselves explaining to a bewildered transwoman patient that a) the genital surgery didn't magic a cervix out of nowhere but b) patient does need to think about prostate cancer screening. ?

Perhaps a little awkward, but is it better or worse than explaining to a transman that if any penises had been in the body region formerly known as their vagina, then yes, cervical screening should still very much be considered. Though hopefully the HPV vaccination has cut down on cervical cancer risk a lot for the younger generation.

It seems like a lot of TRA’s seem to be confused about what sex people are so I guess the ‘people with a cervix’ is for them.

Yes, I know that, but if you play by the NHS rules with their mishmash of terms then it doesn't make sense, after all who are these other people with a cervix if they're not women?

Not going the way you expected OP 😂

I think it’s okay. At least it says women first!

It's better to use "women and people with cervix" than just "people with cervix", but it still mashes two quite different definitions of what 'woman' is together, and that is not logical.

Either 'woman' is a biological sex (and age) category OR it is a feeling which some people with cervix don't share. By mixing those together we have no idea which it is.

The 'nonbinary' concept explains that very clearly. If we now have women, men, and nonbinary people, and given that the nonbinary people are also male or female, the other two words (women and men) can't be referring to sex but to something else. We are never told what that something else might be, but the only verifiable thing (not invisible to outsiders) would be stating a belief in an abstract gender identity based on femininity, masculinity, both or neither AND for those who don't pick nonbinary, and being comfortable with the sexist two-dimensional stereotypical sex roles for men and women.

This is not feminism.

At least it says "women", unlike the Scottish radio adverts which were aimed squarely at "people with a cervix" and avoided the word "women" altogether!

It's fine. If woman wasn't there it would be dreadful - but it is so it's all good. If a trans woman rocks up for a smear they won't get very far. But I doubt they'd be sent this letter.
If trans men and nb people feel better being described that way it's no skin off my nose.

Meh, this is fine, inclusive of trans men but women first.

Trans women are male, regardless of how they feel or identify, and so do not have a cervix.

It’s clearly also targetted towards transmen- so biological females who identify as men thus also have a cervix. Really no need to get in a tiring and predictable mumsnet flap about it.

I agree.

I'm with @Brainworm. It says women - I'm so happy! - and has and to appease the gender woo contingent. Sorted.

I think MN might yet be keeping us to a higher standard than Police Scotland would 🤔

A post calling that person from Edinburgh Rape Crisis 'he' was deleted for misgendering recently. Unless the rules have changed in the last day or so 🤞