NCSP Sector Update – May 2023

The transition to HPV primary screening will be achieved in a phased approach – three phases in total -- with 26 July being the first day when HPV testing becomes Aotearoa New Zealand’s primary screening test for cervical cancer prevention.

The first phase from late July is the Foundational Step. In this phase participants will be able to choose a self- or clinician- taken swab, or an LBC sample which will first be tested for HPV, and if HPV is detected cytology will be performed.  New clinical pathways and the new NCSP-Register will be established. There will be a particular focus on Māori and Pacific participants and increasing screening in the under- or unscreened populations.

The second phase will be called Expanding Reach and will extend from August to December. The focus is on getting more people onto the screening pathway through notifications and new approaches, including under- and unscreened populations both not enrolled in primary care and those enrolled. Better information on screening histories will be available.

The third phase will be called Full Benefit and will extend to March 2024. This is where the full future vision of HPV primary screening will be achieved. A more complete pool of participants will be encouraged into screening, increasing our screening coverage, patient experience and whānau satisfaction. All workforces involved in providing HPV primary screening services will have access to the right information to do their role in supporting wāhine and whānau.

What will be achieved:

a) HPV testing as the primary screening test – HPV testing will find more pre-cancers and prevent more cases of cervical cancer, supported by the speculum and colposcopy tests within the pathways.

b) New NCSP-Register – A single source of truth for screening records and individual schedules.

c) New pathways – Embedding more choice and flexibility into screening, removing barriers to entry and better supporting and increasing equitable outcomes for Māori and Pacific people.

d) Additional workforce and training – Accredited cervical screen-takers/GPs/midwives to do HPV testing as well as the LBC test. Other clinical workforces will be trained to support HPV primary screening, this will also be expanded through to our non-clinical workforce.

More information will be coming through our engagement with you explaining how different parts of the sector will be impacted by the change to HPV primary screening.

We are updating our Resources page on the NSU website with questions and answers from recent engagement hui with the sector, plus answers provided earlier such as in summaries of information from the Goodfellow Unit webinar held in September. The Q&As from that webinar will form the base of the new material, refreshed with more recent questions raised at the engagement hui. The new material will be added soon.

The page can be found here and the webinar is available to view on the Goodfellow website here: https://www.goodfellowunit.org/events-and-webinars/cervical-screening-update

Prior to Christmas we posted an online video for health sector professionals detailing the move to HPV primary screening. Based on feedback received, we’re in the process of revising some wording for greater clarity. The video is close to being finalised and an update will be provided to let you know when the video is available.

This will be the first in a series of planned educational and learning tools to be made available in the run up to the transition to HPV testing in late July 2023. Keep an eye out for our updates as more resources become available.

Development of online training modules is underway. The modules will be a key part of the training and education for the sector alongside other educational resources. The modules will cover topics such as: the HPV virus; how to communicate with participants about HPV and the new screening programme; and the new clinical pathways. These will be available to all roles across the sector but tailored for a clinical audience.

Toitū te Waiora with Te Whatu Ora are undertaking a review of Unit Standard 29556, Undertake Cervical Screening. Accreditation of nurses to support cytology procedures as part of follow up and surveillance will continue to be an important part of the new clinical pathway. Public consultation was undertaken from 16 December to 23 January and subsequently the new standard has been endorsed by the HPV Primary Screening Project Steering Committee and has now been submitted to NZQA. We will share the link to the standard when it is available.

The final sign-out process is underway, after which the Parliamentary Review Committee report will be tabled in the House of Representatives before it is published. We will provide the link to the report when it is available.

The NCSP Clinical Practice Guidelines have been reviewed and are currently going through the editing process.  

Work is progressing on updating the NCSP Laboratory and Colposcopy Policies and Standards, with feedback from the working groups collated and reviewed. They are going through the editing process before they can be published.

A childhood Immunisations campaign has been launched, supporting parents and caregivers to better protect their tamariki from a host of vaccine-preventable diseases.

To help normalise immunisations as one of the things parents can do to protect their children, and to encourage whānau to catch up on any missed vaccinations, a range of material is being released including a television advertisement. There are three different scenes in the promotion that embody the ways parents protect tamariki, drawing an implied link with vaccination.

It will be on mainstream free-to-air channels, Sky TV, and Māori television, as well as TVNZ+ and ThreeNOW, the TV media will run until 4 June. TV will be supported by targeted YouTube and online video placements, as well as screens in medical centres, partner packs, collateral updates, and our immunise.health.nz website.

You can view the advert here: Acts of Aroha – Childhood immunisations.

In addition to the advert, new resources for the health sector, a new immunisation website for parents and caregivers, www.immunise.health.nz and(link is external) other targeted Māori and Pacific resources all aimed at increasing childhood immunisation rates in Aotearoa are being released.

All our immunisation collateral is available on Dropbox for healthcare providers at Dropbox: NIP – vaccine resources – Simplify your life.  

For any other School-based Immunisation Programme collateral like consent forms for use by health professionals please visit the HealthEd website. You can also find a range of vaccination stories on our YouTube channel.  

The rōpū will meet on Thursday 25 May (in person hui).  Minutes of previous meetings are in the process of being updated and can be found here.

The web page for our SSS teams supporting the work of both the National Cervical Screening Programme (NCSP) and BreastScreen Aotearoa (BSA) has been updated to include a new provider in the Hutt Valley. The page is available here.

Screening support services are available for eligible wāhine/whānau who are referred to, or who independently access services from the support to screening providers. This support can assist wāhine/whānau who experience barriers to accessing breast and cervical screening, assessment, and treatment services. Some support to screening providers have mobile teams who make community visits and home visits, while others are based in clinics around the motu. 

The NCSP coverage app is available at https://tewhatuora.shinyapps.io/nsu-ncsp-coverage/

We are receiving regular feedback and questions to HPVscreen@health.govt.nz(link sends e-mail). More information is available on the website here: Frequently asked questions | National Screening Unit (nsu.govt.nz).