Papanicolaou (Pap) smears will be both self-obtained by the patient and obtained by a licensed physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant. Specimens will then be collected by the nurse or medical assistant who will label each specimen separately. Specimens will be blinded so that the pathologist will not know which specimen was self-collected and which provider-collected. Specimens will then be sent to our clinical laboratory provider (LabCorp) for analysis. Once results from the Pap smears are received, participants will be notified in the usual manner in our clinical practice. Finally, analysis will be conducted to ascertain whether or not a self-administered (by the patient) Pap smear is as accurate as a traditional Pap smear administered by a healthcare provider.
The purpose of the study is to find out if a self-administered (by the patient) Papanicolaou (Pap) smear is as accurate as a traditional Pap smear administered by a healthcare provider.