ABSTRACT
Cervical cancer is the second commonest cancer in Nigerian women that can be reduced through effective screening. This study aimed to determine the utilization of cervical cancer screening services among female health care workers in a tertiary hospital. It is a descriptive cross-sectional study that utilized a pretested questionnaire to collect data from 170 respondents. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression. 61.2% had good knowledge about cervical cancer, and 75.3% reported utilization of cervical cancer screening services. Factors that affect utilization of cervical cancer screening services are fear of negative results (82.4%), lack of time (78.2%), cost of screening (63.5%), and support from husband (61.2%). Logistic regression analysis showed that age (ß = 4.009, p = < 0.001), year of experience (ß = -4.350, p <0.001), fear of negative results (ß = -2.479, p = 0.014) and lack of support from husband (ß = 4.380, p < 0.001) significantly predict utilization of screening services. Conclusively, female health workers know about the prevention of cervical cancer and are willing to utilize screening. It is recommended that cervical cancer screening should be made mandatory for female health care workers, to reduce the incidence of cervical cancer cases.
