Cervical screening drive at city's Christmas market

NHS staff will be attending Birmingham's Frankfurt Christmas Market to raise awareness of cervical screening

NHS staff will be attending Birmingham's Christmas market as part of a campaign to boost awareness of the importance of smear tests.

The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust and West Midlands Cervical Screening Service recently launched its Let's Talk Cervical Screening initiative in a bid to educate people and increase uptake rates.

The most recent NHS data suggested more than 500,000 women in the West Midlands between the ages of 25 and 64 were not up to date with their screening.

Staff will be hosting a stall at Birmingham's Frankfurt Christmas Market on Saturday and people have been urged to speak to them about any questions they might have.

Karen Kendall, of the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust and regional screening service, said she hoped the campaign would encourage people to consider getting screened: "There is an urgent need to boost uptake rates across the region and help save lives".

'Vital role'

According to the NHS, some of the most common barriers to cervical screening attendance included embarrassment, anxiety, a lack of understand, concerns about pain, busy schedules and fear of results.

Kate Quinney, of Roche Diagnostics, which is also working on the campaign, said the test could play a "vital role" in preventing cancer.

"I strongly encourage anyone with concerns or questions to visit the team at the Christmas market or explore the online resources available," she said.

"Taking the step to attend your cervical screening appointment is one of the best ways to prevent cancer."