Doctors, peers quell female students’ fears about exams

Doctors, peers quell female students’ fears about exams

Regular checkups can prevent serious infections, cancer

By Karen Duryea

Daily Bruin Staff

The fear of the unknown is a powerful emotion – and when it
comes to pelvic exams, medical personnel said that women often have
apprehension enough to cause them to neglect their health.

"A lot of students don’t know they have to have an exam," said
Archie Villavert, a peer health counselor. "A lot of times, they
don’t know what the exam entails. It sounds kind of cold in a way,
and it sounds painful."

For female students at UCLA, having routine pelvic examinations
is not to be taken lightly, doctors said. They recommend that
college-age women have examinations regularly in order to detect
problems at an early stage.

"They should begin when they are sexually active or about to
become sexually active," said Ann Downie, a supervisor and
registered nurse practitioner at UCLA’s Women’s Health Clinic.

After the initial test, Downie suggests that each woman have a
test once a year. If a woman isn’t sexually active, a test every
two or three years should suffice, she said.

Experts also recommend that sexually active women get regular
examinations for sexually transmitted diseases.

"Especially in this day and age, there are a lot of venereal
diseases going around," Villavert said. "We’ve noticed women are
getting more and more sexually active at a young age."

Peer Health Counselors said most women who have never had an
exam are often apprehensive of the procedure, especially if they
have heard stories of pain.

"They’re scared; they have heard that it hurt a lot," said Alina
Bueno, a peer health counselor and a fitness inventory testing
clinic coordinator. Bueno is also a former women’s health
counselor.

During the exam itself, nurse practitioners said they try to
create a comfortable environment for the patients.

"I tell them I haven’t lost a patient yet," said Downie, who
takes the procedure seriously but feels that making jokes sometimes
helps patients to feel at ease.

If a woman has never had an internal exam, Downie said she
outlines the procedure and tells the patient what she can expect to
feel. Part of the exam entails what is commonly known as a Pap
smear, Pap being short for Papanicolau, the doctor who invented the
test.

Downie described the Pap smear as uncomfortable for some, but
others may not even be aware of the sampling that is performed to
detect abnormal, possibly cancerous cells on the surface of the
cervix.

"(It’s)a very transient sensation, not anything really
significant. (Sometimes) they don’t even know I am doing it unless
I tell them," Downie said. "Having the exam is usually not as bad
as they think its going to be."

Patients receive the exam results two to three weeks after their
test. If cells appear abnormal, the patients are referred to other
facilities within the clinic to have a more specific exam called a
colposcopy. In this procedure, a microscope is used to examine the
vaginal area, making abnormal cells easier to identify.

Downie explained that there have been recent concerns about
false negative tests, in which results are misread and the patient
receives the wrong diagnosis. Research has indicated that 5 to 10
percent of Pap smear readings are false negatives, Downie said.

On Feb. 22, a court case was settled in which families of two
deceased women alleged that the medical laboratory Chem-Bio
Corporation misread the their Pap smears and biopsies. Experts
analyzed the slides in court and concluded that cancer cells were
present.

The women, who were misled by medical professionals to believe
that they were in good health, died in 1993 and 1995. The families
of the two victims received settlements totaling $9.8 million.

But new technology, involving computer scanning of the slides,
is the latest advancement in ensuring the accuracy of Pap smear
readings. Prior to this technology, accuracy was monitored by
randomly double -checking slides.

In order to ensure correct diagnosis, multiple tests are
recommended.

"That is why we suggest a test once a year. They’re not likely
to get two consecutive false negatives," Downie said.

Peer Health Counselors stressed the importance of pelvic exams
and Pap smears, explaining that even good bacteria within the
vaginal area can turn cancerous at any moment – all the more reason
to have regular exams.

"Its kind of like going to the dentist," Downie said. "It is
something that you realize the value of. It’s not the most fun way
to spend your afternoon, but you do it for your health."Comments to
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