All women who have received a letter of invitation for cervical screening will be invited to come for a screening at local health centres without an appointment.
This pilot project will start on 1 March and run until the end of May. Cervical screening open houses will be held on different days and at different times of the day local health centres. A list of clinics and the timing of open houses can be found at the website skimanir.is. Women who have received letters of invitation but have not come in for screening will get a text message to remind them of the importance of screenings.
Women who have received an invitation for screening can attend an open house at which ever health centre suits them best. The screening is carried out by midwives or nurses and only takes a few minutes. The screening costs 500 ISK.
Most women want to come for screening
"The vast majority of women want to attend a screening, but one of the main reasons for not attending is some form of procrastination," says Ágúst Ingi Ágústsson, chief physician of the Cancer Screening Coordination Centre. "We know that having to book an appointment in advance can be a barrier. This is why we want to try offering open houses so that women who receive screening invitations can come to any centre that suits them when open appointments are offered and get screened. Of course, those women who want to make an appointment can continue to do so, through My pages on Heilsuvera or by calling their clinic."
Reduces the chance of cancer by 90%
Regular screening for cervical cancer reduces the chance of getting cancer by 90%. It is therefore extremely important for women to come for a screening when they receive an invitation from the Cancer Screening Coordination Centre.