Voices of the Latina Institute: Spreading the Word

Karla Ayala, Office Administrator, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health
As a young Latina who has had to face the realities and consequences of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), I have been fortunate enough to be able to educate myself on the facts and to educate others through my work as a peer educator. While I have been lucky enough to possibly have changed someone’s life by providing them with this information, I always ask myself about the countless others left in the dark, especially those left behind due to a lack of communication as a result of a language barrier.
When my mom was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 1999, she had no idea what it was or how she developed it. Even scarier, 8 years later, she is just learning about HPV. You’d think some medical professional would have discussed this with her at some point, whether it was at the first sign of an abnormal Pap smear or sometime before her hysterectomy. But sadly, this wasn’t the case. My mother speaks primarily Spanish, and not only was an interpreter rarely provided for her, but when one was, they clearly did not take the time to discuss everything in depth.
My mother is not alone. At a recent workshop I hosted on HPV among young deaf women of color in NYC, more than half the women in the room had no idea what HPV was. Although they’d seen ads for the vaccine, they knew relatively little about it. Some thought HPV was actually herpes and most had no idea how prevalent it was among sexually active people. Clearly the message was not getting across to this group of women.
The media can infuse us with a million ads about HPV vaccines. But until health care providers and educators begin discussing HPV with women consistently, and start taking the time to break through to communities already at a disadvantage due to language barriers, HPV and cervical cancer will not simply disappear. Not speaking English, or not having access to comprehensive sexuality education should not automatically qualify you for a death sentence because no one took the time to reach out.
This fall, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health will launch its Cuídate, �rmate, Edúcate: Latinas for Cervical Cancer Prevention campaign to continue the dialogue in the Latino community. For more information, visit www.latinainstitute.org.