MSc. Daniela Fiľakovská
Department of Health Psychology and Research Methodology, Faculty of Medicine, PJ Safarik University, Kosice, Slovak Republic
RIVER-EU country coordinators from the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University (UPJS), participated in a roundtable in Košice in March that was dedicated to the fight against HPV caused cancers.
Daniela Filakovska, Senior Researcher at UPJS and RIVER-EU coordinator for Slovakia joined a broad range of stakeholders from the country’s public health sector at the roundtable. Representatives included the Ministry of Health, health insurance companies, community professionals, patient organisations, self-governing regions, and public health authorities. Invited participants discussed potential activities aimed at preventing HPV-related cancer and projects for the coming year.
Five crucial next steps to facilitate higher HPV vaccine uptake were outlined in the roundtable discussion report. Those steps are as follows:
- Expand health insurance coverage of the HPV vaccination for 13-14-year-old children (or for 9-14-year-old children).
- Expand the collection and availability of HPV vaccination data.
- Introduce reimbursement schemes for medical professionals who administer the HPV vaccination.
- Support the implementation of HPV-related cancer prevention programmes (educational activities and mass vaccination events) in self-governing regions.
- Focus on educational efforts in schools including those from underserved and marginalised groups to raise HPV awareness and prevention in both boys and girls.
Thanks to the RIVER-EU research conducted in Slovakia, marginalised, and underserved communities are not overlooked in high level discussions.
The proposed next steps are in line with the up-to-date findings and resulting recommendations of the RIVER-EU project. UPJS are happy to take part in such discussions in the interest of underserved communities in Slovakia.
