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Evaluation of a training workshop on the use of visual inspection with acetic acid in cervical cancer screening

Maria Julieta V. Germar, MD, FPOGS, FSGOP and Joanne Sebastiana M. De Ramos, MD
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Philippine General Hospital, University of the Philippines-Manila

Objective: The Department of Health developed a program for Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control in the Philippines and this involves training of health care providers on Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid (VIA). The evaluation of this training program aims to determine the effectivity of the training workshop in increasing the knowledge and skills of healthcare providers in VIA and whether this would translate to practice in their workplaces.

Method: The first run of the training program was evaluated and the approach used was Kirkpatrick’s model. Participants were asked to complete an evaluation questionnaire for Level 1 evaluation. A pre-test, post-test and performance checklist were accomplished for Level 2 evaluation. For Level 3 evaluation, randomly selected participants were interviewed via mobile phone. Data analysis involved descriptive methods and inferential statistics (T-test and McNemar test) for Level 2.

Results: Level 1 evaluation demonstrated a high over-all satisfaction rating from the participants (x ?=4.59) and the training workshop was found to be relevant and useful to their practice. Level 2 evaluation showed a significant increase in the knowledge of the participants (P=.001) particularly in the core topics of cervical cancer epidemiology (P=.001) and VIA (P=.006). There was likewise a significant improvement in the performance of VIA from the first to the last patient encounter (P=.000). Level 3 evaluation showed that the participants interviewed have realized the importance of VIA

Conclusion: The training workshop was effective in increasing the knowledge base and clinical skills required of health care professionals who will provide cervical cancer screening services using visual inspection with acetic acid. As a direct effect of the increase in knowledge and skills, the participants have started to incorporate their new learnings into their practice.

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