Cervical screening campaign

[GrimSisters]

This popped up on FB and everyone seems to be thinking he's oh so wonderful for having dreamed up this ad campaign. AIBU to think it's gross, or am i just a massive prude?

From 'Man Behaving Dadly'
"A little while ago, I was asked to come up with ideas for a social media campaign led by GP practices in Suffolk to try and encourage local women to not ignore their letters inviting them for a smear test.

I pitched the slogan ‘Use Your Head, And Spread,’ which I didn’t think they would go for as it’s about as close to the mark as I have ever gone, but incredibly they went for it as part of their new campaign - Uncomfortable, Awkward, Lifesaving.

I know that it’s going to upset or offend some people, but surely if it gets people booking their smear tests then the job’s a good’un?"

@TapingTheTop40

As someone who is currently going through cervical cancer - thankfully a treatable stage Becuase I DIDNT ignore my letter- the fact is this campaign has caught your attention and you’re talking about it.

Therefore I could care if they said Squat and get your WAP out as long as people took notice and booked a smear test.

If I hadn’t I’d be dead in a few years

I'm sorry you're going through that 🌷

However, people 'talking about it' doesn't mean they'll book a CS - as people have said it's off putting.

Both the tone 'use you head' & the sexualised nature if it.

I don't want to feel the person doing it, sees it in a sexual way. urgh.

I was 'invited' in June. No way was I going then. I've been trying to book it since Mid August though, can't get a booking. The only reason I go these days is because of a lovely poster MrsDeVere 💕

@Gurufloof

I've actually gone as far as opting out of the smear. So I dont get asked or letters anymore. I no longer have to put it off the day before the appointment several times before I get up the courage to go. The stress of that is gone. And this wont suddenly change my mind. Its rather crude, and like a man has no idea how awful smears can be anyway. And could not care any less if he tried. Idiot.

Ditto. The reminder letters weren't doing my mental health wonders so I've opted out. I feel less harassed now.

So, anyone thinking it might have been a spoof (including the two incredulous GPs and a nurse I showed this to today) - it wasn't.
He's whining about it on FB, totally unable to see exactly what the problem was.

www.facebook.com/2238569542822422/posts/3616264418386254/

Screenshots for when this post eventually disappears - along with the insightful posts from women pointing out why it was not a good idea.

The comments backing him up under his 'response' on fb are grim.

If I say 'use your head' to someone I'm calling them thick, its patronising that he's saying women are stupid for not having their test, as if that's the reason why some don't want to do it
The only thing missing from his poster is a silhouette of open legs above the writing, yuk

I think he's probably quite proud of his little ditty and the fact that it rhymes too, how clever!

It's really crude and aggressive in tone which he clearly doesn't understand, I've read some of his comments.

I sent the image to my DH and said what do you think of this slogan? He said - we'll it clearly wasn't written by a woman and it's about as uninviting as possible.

@Marmitecrackers

Im not really seeing the problem.

I don't get the big drama about a smear. It takes 5 minutes, isn't the most comfortable but it's over quickly. As for dignity, it's an examination by a health professional. It's not dignified to go on s night out with half your breasts on show but people do it. A medical examination to be is just a formality we have to go through.

Good for you

It’s not the same for me. But well done you

Since we've now got several "what's the problem?" posters popping up, let me repeat what I said earlier.

This is about public health outreach.

Women with no problem, women who are comfortable in their bodies, women who don't feel embarrassed about medical practitioners - these are the women who are ALREADY going for smear tests because they don't have a problem. They are not your target audience.

Women with a history of sexual abuse, women whose cultural or religious backgrounds may make them uncomfortable with having intimate exams, women with a quirk of anatomy which makes smear tests more uncomfortable or even painful than average - these are the people you need to reach out to, and you reach out to them by setting their fears at rest, not by bloody sexualising a procedure they already have reservations about.

It's not fucking rocket science. It just requires a bit of basic empathy.

Women with a history of sexual abuse, women whose cultural or religious backgrounds may make them uncomfortable with having intimate exams, women with a quirk of anatomy which makes smear tests more uncomfortable or even painful than average -these are the people you need to reach out to, and you reach out to them by setting their fears at rest,notby bloody sexualising a procedure they already have reservations about.

A message which apparently needs shouting from the rooftops since a surprising number of people just aren't getting it

If the authorities genuinely want more women to go for their smears then they need to make it easier to have one, as well as getting the message across to those in Cara's post. Too many surgeries stopped doing them during lockdown (for no good reason, you can't catch covid from that end!) and even before that you have to try to get an appointment when you don't have a period and that isn't easy.

I can't believe there are people on here telling you how to opt out of screening reminders. FFS this us serious.

Go and get it done. Stop being embarrassed and just do it.

People should be able to point out that this is an optional test. People should know it’s not compulsory and that you can opt out of reminders if you want to. Posters on here going on about “just go and get it done” and “stop being embarrassed” are part of the problem. If a person wants the test, then they will make the appointment and get their test. These people don’t need to be reached by any campaign. If someone has made their mind up not to have screening, it’s important to respect their decision and not scold or belittle them by telling them to get over it and get it done.

My first reaction to the poster was to recoil slightly, then tell it to fuck off.

I've only known 'spreading your legs' to be used as a misogynistic insult towards women and it fucked me off no end for a poster to be ordering me to do it.

@Marmitecrackers

I can't believe there are people on here telling you how to opt out of screening reminders. FFS this us serious.

Go and get it done. Stop being embarrassed and just do it.

You are completely missing the point that for women who've been assaulted or suffered other trauma it isn't embarrassment that's stopping them. I get panic attacks at mine and it's bloody hard to make myself go.

Stop assuming that because you can cope then everyone else can, too.

@Marmitecrackers

I can't believe there are people on here telling you how to opt out of screening reminders. FFS this us serious.

Go and get it done. Stop being embarrassed and just do it.

I’m not embarrassed. It’s crippling agony for me. Even just putting in the thing to open the cervix is agony. Proper sobbing begging the nurse to stop agony. That’s before they’ve done anything else.

I wish it was embarrassment but it’s not

@PanamaPattie

People should be able to point out that this is an optional test. People should know it’s not compulsory and that you can opt out of reminders if you want to. Posters on here going on about “just go and get it done” and “stop being embarrassed” are part of the problem. If a person wants the test, then they will make the appointment and get their test. These people don’t need to be reached by any campaign. If someone has made their mind up not to have screening, it’s important to respect their decision and not scold or belittle them by telling them to get over it and get it done.

Yes - this.

There is also a very real question as to how much benefit it is. Bear with me while I pop my "does statistics in the day job" hat on.

All medical tests throw up false positives (tell someone they have a medical condition when they haven't) and misses (tell someone they haven't got the condition when in fact they have). The first lead to medical treatment which can in itself be very invasive and damaging.

There is a question with any screening programme as to whether the amount of iatrogenic damage (doctor-induced damage) due to false positives outweighs the harm done by the disease.

The general answer to this question is that at a population level, yes it is beneficial - it will save more lives and lead to greater reductions in serious illness /complications than it causes.

But at an individual level it is quite reasonable for an individual woman to say "no, the psychological damage this does to me outweighs the chance of it identifying cervical cancer which I deem myself to be at low enough risk of that I am happy to opt out of this test."

Opting out doesn't mean someone is stupid or unreasonable - for an individual woman, it may be a carefully thought out decision based on weighing up her own circumstances and personal tolerance for risk.

Exactly @CaraDuneRedux I find them excrutiatingly painful. The last one was in November 2014.

And when you throw a mask into the mix that just rubber stamps the fact that i wont have it done again. Its painful enough without sweating and hyperventilating in a mask.........."breathe deeply" yeah right lol. Not going to happen. Mask or no mask though its not happening.

Im not sexually active so low risk (not no risk i know, no one is) but im not putting myself through all that again and with a mask as well.

But if there is a lower take up from here on in i bet it gets dressed up as women being frightened of Covid rather than women not wanting to go through what is already a very painful procedure for some, in a mask.

Because some wont want to face the fact that these Covid precautions adversely affect women.

I did get a reminder letter very recently. Didnt know whether to laugh or cry.

Me too - it kept mentioning women so I was pleasantly surprised.

Being caused flashbacks so severe you attempt to end your own life is not "embarrassment" and anyone suggesting it is can take their ignorance and fuck off.

@Marmitecrackers

I can't believe there are people on here telling you how to opt out of screening reminders. FFS this us serious.

Go and get it done. Stop being embarrassed and just do it.

I find mine very uncomfortable and I definitely won't be rushing to have it, especially at the moment.

If it was men going through the same pain you can bet that urine test would be available toot suite.

As someone who's not embarrassed, and is able to grit her teeth (TMI and possibly trigger warning coming up for those who do find them traumatic for any reason) I'd like to talk the "ooh, it's just a breeze" people through a bad smear test.

I have a retroverted uterus, which means it flops backwards on the ligaments needed to hold it in place, so the cervix doesn't quite "point" in the normal direction. I'm also post-menopausal, which means everything's gone a bit saggy and I've lost muscle tone.

Cervical smears actually need to be targeted quite precisely - you need to get a sample from the right bit of the cervix.

Last but one smear I had, we tried: on my back; on my side; on all fours; on my back with my legs akimbo up the sodding wall. I swear we tried more positions than the Kama fucking Sutra (pun intended).

It was uncomfortable, at times painful, humiliating and generally horrible (though at least the HCP, a middle aged woman like me, was very nice and understanding). And we still didn't get a decent sample. I had to go back a week later for another go.

For some women, cervical smears are physically difficult. For other women, cervical smears are psychologically difficult.

Why is this so hard to understand?

**I’m not embarrassed. It’s crippling agony for me. Even just putting in the thing to open the cervix is agony.
Proper sobbing begging the nurse to stop agony.
That’s before they’ve done anything else.

I wish it was embarrassment but it’s not**

They don't open the cervix during a smear test. The speculum opens up inside the vagina which gives the nurse access to the cervix, and then a small brush is used to collect cervical cells.