Erika Marek

Difficulties in the prevention of cervical cancer: Adults’ attitudes towards HPV vaccination 3 years after introducing the vaccine in Hungary

Cervical cancer is one of the most prevalent gynaecological malignancies worldwide. The Hungarian incidence and mortality of this disease take the 4th-5th places within the European Union. A survey including 785 male and female adults was conducted to assess the knowledge and attitudes concerning HPV vaccination. We focused on the difficulties of the primary and secondary prevention of cervical cancer and examined some potential sociodemographic predictors of HPV vaccine acceptability. Our findings have identified some important issues like: incomplete knowledge, intense distrust and financial concerns. Almost half of the college students (45.6%) are unaware of HPV infections. We confirmed previous findings that older age and female gender correlates with better knowledge on STDs, including HPV. We found that greater exposure to health information comes with better knowledge and more positive attitudes towards vaccination. One quarter of survey respondents do not believe that cervical cancer may be prevented by vaccination. More than half of the adults do not trust national health care system and the preparedness of Hungarian doctors. General attitudes towards vaccination are broadly positive, 80% of survey participants had expressed desire towards HPV vaccination, however if there was a need to pay for the vaccination the willingness would decrease by half. Primary prevention through HPV-focused educational programs, clear communication and financial support would be important for public health to reduce the high incidence and mortality of cervical cancer in Hungary in the future.

Perception of Occupational Risks and Practices of Self-protection from Infectious Diseases Among Workers in Contact with International Migrants at Hungary’s Border

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to investigate employees’ self-assessments of their occupational risks and health awareness as well as their perception of preventive methods. We also aimed to collect data on employees’ perception of some selected alarming signs and symptoms that may encourage them to take further actions (such as separation and calling an ambulance). Participants and methods: Between April and June 2013, an anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted with the participation of 70 employees working with migrants (both health-care and non-health-care staff) in 10 Hungarian settlements: 4 border crossing points along the eastern Schengen borderline, 3 asylum detention centers and 3 reception centers. Results: Our results demonstrated an increased perception of certain biological and mental health hazards at work among those working with migrants: 63.7% of the health-care workers and even 37.3% of the non-health-care staff come into contact with human secretions (feces, urine, saliva) “frequently” or “sometimes”. Self-assessed awareness of the signs and symptoms of infectious diseases was poor: only 12.8% of participants evaluated their awareness as “good” or “very good”. Threat of verbal violence may be considered a common mental risk at work for participants: 35% “sometimes” or “frequently” and 5% “always” face verbal violence during their work. The most commonly used preventive measures against infectious diseases included the use of gloves, masks and disinfectants; these were generally available to 70 to 80% of the workers and properly applied. Conclusions: Our results indicate considerable deficiencies in the participants’ preparedness in respect to their occupational health-related issues. Since it is essential for those having daily physical contact with migrants during their work to be properly informed about the occupational health hazards and consequences that may be associated with international migration, their training programs urgently require further development. More comprehensive knowledge may improve the preventive attitudes of employees, and conscious application of preventive measures may contribute to better public and occupation health safety.