The problems encountered by midwives during breast self-examination training

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Public Health
• Nursing Education

Background:

• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in Turkey, representing 24% of female cancers.
• Effective breast self-examination (BSE) is crucial for early detection and is best taught by healthcare professionals like physicians or nurses/midwives.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the current practices and perceived sufficiency of midwives in Samsun, Turkey, regarding breast self-examination (BSE) education.
• To identify barriers encountered by midwives when educating women on BSE.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive study conducted in 16 health centers in Samsun, Turkey, from September to December 2006.
• A total of 103 midwives participated (response rate: 83.06%), with data collected via questionnaires and a problem definition list.
• Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were employed for data analysis.

Main Results:

• While 90.3% of midwives perform BSE, 82.6% do so irregularly. 97.1% consider BSE important, and 78.6% have received on-the-job training.
• 82.5% of midwives educate women on BSE, yet 75.7% feel insufficiently trained themselves.
• Key barriers include women's unwillingness to perform BSE (43.7%), difficulty distinguishing masses (48.5%), lack of confidence (49.5%), and reluctance to consider cancer (41.7%).

Conclusions:

• Midwives are actively involved in BSE education but often lack confidence and training.
• Addressing women's psychological barriers and improving midwife training are essential for enhancing BSE practices.
• Midwives should tailor their training sessions to overcome these identified challenges for more effective BSE.