Perceptions of Cervical Cancer Screening, Screening Behavior, and Post-Migration Living Difficulties Among Bhutanese–Nepali Refugee Women in the United States

Bhutanese–Nepali refugees are one of the largest refugee groups to be resettled in the U.S. in the past decade. Cervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer disparity in this population, yet screening rates are suboptimal. Nepali-speaking interviewers administered a community health needs questionnaire to a convenience sample of Bhutanese–Nepali refugees in a Midwestern city between July to October of 2015. Descriptive statistics were used to describe socio-demographic characteristics, Pap smear beliefs, post-migration living difficulties, and screening status. Differences in Pap test uptake between groups were tested using t test and Chi square statistics. Of the 97 female participants, 44.3% reported ever having had a Pap smear. Screening rates were lowest among women who did not know English at all. Most women had positive perceptions of Pap smears (80%) and 44.4% had received a Pap test recommendation from their healthcare provider, family, or friends. Pap testing was significantly higher among those who had positive perceptions (58.3 vs. 11.1% for women of negative perception, p = 0.01) and those who had received a recommendation (87.5 vs. 18.6% for women who had no recommendations, p < 0.001). Significant predictors of having a Pap smear were having a healthcare provider/family/friends recommendation (OR 65.3, 95% CI 11.4-373.3) and greater number of post-migration living difficulties (OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.02–1.37). The results of this study have important implications for the development of cervical cancer prevention programs targeting Bhutanese–Nepali refugees. Providing cancer prevention interventions early in the resettlement process could impact Pap test uptake in this population.