Taking a Smear

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1. Ensure you have all of the necessary equipment ready. This includes:

   • gloves
   • speculum
   • lubricant
   • a cervical brush
   • a pot of cytology preservative solution
   • a light source
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      Smear test equipment

2. Next you should position the patient correctly. Ask them to lie on the bed with their ankles together and allow their knees to come apart.

3. Initially, put on your gloves and examine the outer vagina checking for any obvious abnormalities.

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      Examine the outer vagina

4. Next, warm the blades of the speculum with warm water. This also acts to lubricate the speculum but you may also like to apply some lubricant.

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      Apply some lubricant to speculum

5. Inform the patient that you are about to start the procedure. Use your left hand to part the labia minora and insert the speculum with the screw facing sideways.

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      Insert the speculum

6. As you advance the speculum, turn it so that the screw faces upwards. Open the blades and fix them open with the screw. Ensure that you can see well by adjusting the light source. Check for any gross pathology and identify the transition zone.

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      Advance the speculum

7. Place the tip of the cervical brush into the external cervical os and rotate it three times through 360 degrees ensuring that it is always in contact with the cervix.

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      Place the tip of the cervical brush into the external cervical os

8. Remove the brush ensuring it does not wipe against anything. Then place the end of the brush into the sample pot.

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      Place the end of the brush into the sample pot

9. Release the screw on the speculum and carefully remove it from the vagina.

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      Carefully remove the speculum from the vagina