Abstract
Background: Cervical cancer persists in Aotearoa New Zealand, mainly due to under-screening. Longstanding disparities in screening and cancer rates remain for Māori, Pacific and people not regularly screened. Community pharmacies are an important and accessible part of primary care.
Objective: To outline and provide potential models of pharmacy involvement in the provision of HPV self-testing. Of the three potential models identified, our proof-of-concept study trialled two models: the 1) promotion of human papillomavirus (HPV) self-testing by pharmacy staff, with mailed test kits from the study team (a centralised co-ordination function), and 2) on-site provision of at-home self-test kits by study nurses, both with telehealth support and results follow-up from the study team to expand self-test access.
Methods: Six Auckland community pharmacies with high proportions of female Māori and Pacific customers (based on dispensing data) participated in the study for 6 weeks from May to July 2024. All pharmacies participated in the promotion model and one participated in the on-site provision model.
Results: Although our numbers were small (n = 45 participants), our sample return uptake was 69%, showing that pharmacy involvement can engage people with HPV self-testing. Self-tested participants (n = 31) included 29% who were Māori (19%) or Pacific (10%), and 32% who were overdue for screening by ≥2 years. All surveyed pharmacy staff (n = 16) supported pharmacy involvement in providing HPV self-tests.
Conclusions: Community pharmacies, supported by a centralised co-ordination team, appropriate infrastructure and resources, may be an additional setting for further research to increase access to HPV self-testing for Māori, Pacific, under-screened people, and those not enrolled with a primary care provider.