Community cytological surveillance following treatment of cervical intra-epithelial neoplasia

Summary

Following treatment for cervical intra-epithelial neoplasia (CIN) initial cytological follow up is frequently hospital based and undertaken in a colposcopy clinic. The National Health Service Cervical Screening Programme report on Clinical Practice and Programme Management (Duncan, 1992) states that cytological surveillance following treatment for CIN is imperative, but colposcopic assessment is not essential. Limited hospital clinic resources led us to evaluate community cytological surveillance for selected patients following treatment. It was hoped that this policy would improve quality of service by reducing both waiting time for new referrals and the number of women attending each clinic, thus allowing longer consultation times. An audit was performed to assess the effectiveness of community surveillance.