On 1 September 2010 CervicalCheck – The National Cervical Screening Programme will enter its third year of operation and final year of its first three year screening round. To coincide, the programme will move to the third phase of encouraging participation among women with the introduction of direct programme entry (by smeartakers) of new eligible women. The move will be in support of the ongoing issuing of call and re-call letters of invitation to women aged 25 to 60.

The Minister for Health and Children is considering making regulations to reduce the rate of fees and associated payments payable to certain health professionals under the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2009. This consideration includes exploring the scope for further reductions in fees for smeartaking services provided as part of CervicalCheck – The National Cervical Screening Programme.

CervicalCheck - The National Cervical Screening Programme is pleased to announce that its Smeartaker Training Prospectus for 2010-2011 is now available online. The prospectus contains information on accredited training courses available for smeartakers and also outlines the benefits of smeartaker training.

The BreastCheck and CervicalCheck programmes were recently shortlisted in the Best Health Promotion category of the CrystalClear Health Literacy Awards for promoting awareness of programmes.

The National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) today congratulates the Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA) on receiving a Pearl of Wisdom Award from the European Cervical Cancer Association for its commitment to raising awareness about cervical cancer prevention.