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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
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Results for hiv (viruses)
27 results foundAuthor: Chu, Sandra Ka Hon Title: Clean Switch: The Case for Prison Needle and Syringe Programs in Canada Summary: Prison systems have implemented, to varying degrees, forms of harm reduction aimed at preventing HIV transmission in prisons. However, as of September 2008, no Canadian jurisdiction had established a prison-based needle and syringe program. This paper outlines the available evidence and legal rationale, under federal Canadian and international human rights law, for Canada to implement a prison-based needle and syringe program without delay. Details: Toronto: Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, 2009. 39p. Source: Year: 2009 Country: Canada URL: Shelf Number: 117371 Keywords: AIDS (Disease)Health CareHIV (Viruses)Prisoners |
Author: McLemore, Megan Title: Sentenced to Stigma: Segregation of HIV-Positive Prisoners in Alabama and South Carolina Summary: Upon entering the state prison system in Alabama, South Carolina or Mississippi, each prisoner must submit to a test for HIV. In Alabama and South Carolina, the HIV test determines where prisoners are housed, eat and worship. These prisoners are denied equal participation in prison jobs, programs, and re-entry opportunites that facilitate their transition back into society. Details: New York: American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch, 2010. 49p. Source: Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 118256 Keywords: AIDS (Disease)HIV (Viruses)Prisoners (Alabama and South Carolina) |
Author: Maruschak, Laura M. Title: HIV in Prisons, 2007-08 Summary: This report presents data on the number of male and female prisoners infected with the human immunodeficiency virus(HIV) or who had confirmed AIDS at yearend 2008. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2009. 12p. Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin, December 2009 Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 118318 Keywords: AIDSHIV (Viruses)Inmates (U.S.) |
Author: Hoover, Jeff Title: Harm Reduction in Prison: The Moldova Model Summary: This report focuses on the introduction of harm reduction programs in Moldovan prisons and describes successes achieved as well as remaining challenges. Research was conducted in Moldova in August 2007 and October 2008, with seven site visits to prisons and one site visit to a pretrial detention facility, as well as visits to the headquarters of the penitentiary system and Innovative Projects in Prisons—a nongovernmental organization (NGO) that provides harm reduction services in prisons. The authors interviewed prisoners and pretrial detainees, NGO staff, and penitentiary system officials and employees at both the national and local levels. The extent of research conducted at each prison and pretrial detention facility varied due to several factors, including: length and timing of visit; staff responsibilities and availability at the time; and access to prisoners and their ability and willingness to talk. Details: New York: Open Society Institute, 2009. 66p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2009 Country: Moldova URL: Shelf Number: 116256 Keywords: AIDS (Disease )Drug Addiction and AbuseHarm ReductionHealth CareHIV (Viruses)InmatesPrisons (Moldova) |
Author: Center for HIV Law and Policy Title: Juvenile Injustice: The Unfulfilled Rights of Youth in State Custody to Comprehensive Sexual Health Care Summary: This is the first legal report and guide on the rights of youth in detention and foster care facilities to comprehensive sexual health care, including sexual medical care, sexuality education, and staff training on sexual orientation and the needs and rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. This publication analyzes the foundation of this right and the sexual health care needs of youth in out-of-home care. Youth in state custody, particularly LGBTQ youth, are at higher than average risk of acquiring sexually transmitted infections and HIV but there is not one state in the country that guarantees access to the necessary sexual medical care and scientifically accurate and inclusive sexuality education that would address this health crisis. Youth in out-of-home-care report sexual activity at earlier ages, higher-risk sexual activity and greater rates of STIs and HIV than youth who live with family members. These sexual health risks are additionally severe for LGBTQ youth, who are disproportionately represented in state detention and foster care facilities yet are largely ignored in health care and education services. According to a recent Department of Justice Report, gay youth also are also more likely to be the victims of sexual abuse while confined to juvenile facilities. Details: New York: Center for HIV Law and Policy, 2010. 53p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed December 10, 2010 at: http://www.hivlawandpolicy.org/resources/view/565 Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://www.hivlawandpolicy.org/resources/view/565 Shelf Number: 120437 Keywords: Health CareHIV (Viruses)Human Immunodefiency VirusJuvenile DetentionJuvenile Inmates |
Author: Long, Siân Title: Protecting Children Affected by HIV Against Abuse, Exploitation, Violence, and Neglect. Summary: This document is intended to explore strategies to protect orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) who were made so by HIV from abuse, exploitation, violence, and neglect. It draws from lessons learned by OVC program managers, designers, and policy developers — particularly those associated with the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEFPAR). OVC are defined by the Joint U.N. Programme on HIV/AIDS, and the Hyde-Lantos Act that reauthorized PEPFAR, as “Children who have lost a parent to HIV, who are otherwise directly affected by the disease, or who live in areas of high HIV prevalence and may be vulnerable to the disease or its socioeconomic effects” (Lantos and Hyde 2008, 2-3). The international community defines children as individuals from birth up to 18 years of age. Current PEPFAR OVC programming guidance describes strategies to protect OVC as those that “confront the reality of stigma and social neglect faced by OVC as well as abuse and exploitation, including trafficking, the taking of inherited property, and land tenure, and helping children obtain birth certificates to legalize their status” (PEPFAR and the Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator 2006, 8). For the purposes of this document, discussion will focus on programs that aim to prevent and respond to abuse, neglect, exploitation, and violence. This document identifies gaps in current child protection strategies employed within PEPFAR OVC programs; introduces a range of emerging best practices or promising strategies for preventing and responding to child abuse, exploitation, and neglect; suggests contexts in which each strategy might be useful; outlines ways to measure the success of specific strategies; and provides a list of tools and resources available to program implementers and designers to support implementation of strategies. Details: Arlington, VA: USAID’s AIDS Support and Technical Assistance Resources, AIDSTAR-One, Task Order 1, 2011. 62p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 16, 2011 at: http://www.aidstar-one.com/sites/default/files/ovc/reports/childprotection/AIDSTAR-One_Report_OVC_Child%20Protection.pdf Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.aidstar-one.com/sites/default/files/ovc/reports/childprotection/AIDSTAR-One_Report_OVC_Child%20Protection.pdf Shelf Number: 122761 Keywords: Child Abuse and NeglectChild ProtectionHIV (Viruses) |
Author: Weilandt, Caren Title: HIV in Prisons: Situation and Needs Assessment Toolkit Summary: This toolkit is part of a set of documents produced by United Nations agencies aimed at providing up-to-date evidence-informed guidance on HIV in prisons. These include: • HIV/AIDS Prevention, Care, Treatment and Support in Prisons: A Framework for an Effective National Response. This document provides a framework for mounting an effective national response to HIV in prisons, based on the evidence reviewed in the Evidence for Action Technical Papers and on accepted international standards and guidelines, and reflecting principles of good prison management. It sets out 11 principles and 100 actions. Available at www.unodc.org/pdf/HIV-AIDS_prisons_July06.pdf • HIV and AIDS in places of detention: A training toolkit for policymakers, programme managers, prison officers and health care providers in prisons. This document provides information and guidance primarily to individuals and institutions with responsibilities for prisons and prisoners, and to people who work in and with prisons. In addition, it will assist everyone who has anything to do with prisons. Available in English and Russian at http://www. unodc.org/unodc/en/hiv-aids/publications.html?ref=menuside • HIV testing and counselling in prisons and other closed settings. This policy brief provides guidelines for ensuring access to voluntary counselling and HIV testing for prisoners. Available in English at http://www. unodc.org/unodc/en/hiv-aids/publications.html?ref=menuside • Women and HIV in prisons. This information note describes the HIV characteristics of women in prison and lists recommended responses. Available in English, Spanish, Russian and Bahasa Indonesian at http://www. unodc.org/unodc/en/hiv-aids/publications.html?ref=menuside • Policy Brief: Reduction of HIV Transmission in Prisons. This document provides a two-page summary of the evidence related to HIV prevention programmes in prisons. Available in English and Russian via www.who.int/hiv/pub/idu/idupolicybriefs/en/index.html • Evidence for Action Technical Papers on Effectiveness of Interventions to Address HIV in Prisons. These papers provide a comprehensive review of the effectiveness of interventions to address HIV in prisons. They contain the most detailed and rigorous analysis of the evidence related to HIV in prisons undertaken to date, with hundreds of references. They comprise ‘Dependence Treatments’; ‘Needle and Syringe Programmes and Decontamination Strategies’; ‘HIV Care, Treatment and Support’ and ’Prevention of Sexual Transmission’. Available in English and Russian at http://www. unodc.org/unodc/en/hiv-aids/publications.html?ref=menuside • Policy guidelines for collaborative TB and HIV services for injecting and other drug users - an integrated approach (pdf) . Available at http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2008/9789241596930_eng.pdf • Guidelines for Control of Tuberculosis in Prisons. This document provides general guiding principles for the implementation of the STOP TB Strategy in prisons to accelerate case detection and treatment targets and to cure and prevent the emergence of drug resistance. Available at http://www.tbcta.org//Uploaded_files/Zelf/GuidelineTBPrisons1252321251.pdf Details: Vienna: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2011. 92p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 15, 2011 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/hiv-aids/publications/HIV_in_prisons_situation_and_needs_assessment_document.pdf Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/hiv-aids/publications/HIV_in_prisons_situation_and_needs_assessment_document.pdf Shelf Number: 123345 Keywords: Health Care, PrisonsHIV (Viruses) |
Author: Zakaria, Dianne Title: The Relationship between Knowledge of HIV and HCV, Health Education, and Risk and Harm-Reducing Behaviours among Canadian Federal Inmates Summary: For inmates to make informed decisions about risk-behaviours, such as injection drug use and unprotected sex, they require knowledge about infectious disease transmission and prevention. Previous research suggests that greater human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) knowledge does not necessarily translate into less HIV risk-behaviours, but similar research examining the relationship between hepatitis C virus (HCV) knowledge and risk-behaviours is lacking. Moreover, past research has not extensively examined harm-reducing behaviours, such as bleaching injecting equipment, and no studies were identified which examined the association between knowledge and behaviour in the Canadian correctional context. To address these deficiencies in the literature, in 2007 the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) conducted the National Inmate Infectious Diseases and Risk Behaviours Survey (NIIDRBS), a self-administered paper questionnaire completed by a large sample of Canadian federal inmates (n = 3,370). This report presents NIIDRBS data on Canadian federal inmates’ knowledge of HIV and HCV; the association between health education program attendance and knowledge; and, the association between knowledge and risk and harm-reducing behaviours. Overall knowledge was higher for HIV than HCV. On average, inmates correctly answered 80% (95% CI: 79, 80) of the HIV questions compared to 69% (95% CI: 68, 70) of the HCV questions. Inmates were most knowledgeable regarding the major modes of transmission for both HIV (M = 85%, 95% CI: 84, 85) and HCV (M = 83%, 95% CI: 82, 84). For HCV, however, knowledge of transmission through casual contact (M = 62%, 95% CI: 61, 64), prevention (M = 63%, 95% CI: 62, 65), and testing and treatment (M = 60%, 95% CI: 58, 61) were lower. The most substantial association between health education program attendance and knowledge was noted among women. Specifically, women attendees correctly answered, on average, 78% (95% CI: 77, 80) of the HCV questions compared to 68% (95% CI: 64, 71) for women non-attendees. Contrary to previously published research, there were instances where greater knowledge was associated with safer behaviour. First, inmates aware of the HIV-risk associated with injecting drugs with needles previously used by others were less likely to report injecting drugs during the past six months in prison compared to inmates who were unaware of the risk (14% vs. 22%, χ2(1, n = 2,922) = 5.84, p < 0.05). Second, among males who injected drugs during the past six months in prison, those aware of the HCV-risk were more likely to have last injected with a needle cleaned with bleach compared to those unaware of the risk (73% vs. 46%, χ2(1, n = 265) = 9.00, p < 0.05). Third, among males ever pierced on a CSC prison range, those aware of the HCV-risk were twice as likely to report consistently using piercing equipment cleaned with bleach compared to those unaware of the risk (63% vs. 31%, χ2(1, n = 306) = 8.15, p < 0.05). Finally, among currently sexually active women, those aware of the HIV-risk were less likely to report unprotected anal sex with women during the past six months in prison compared to those who were unaware of the risk (37% vs. 71%, χ2(1, n = 55) = 5.57, p < 0.05). Further, those aware of the HCV-risk were less likely to report unprotected vaginal sex with women compared to those unaware of the risk (67% vs. 91%, χ2 (1, n = 59) = 5.30, p < 0.05). Thus, greater knowledge may not consistently reduce the occurrence of a risk-behaviour, but it may increase an inmate’s tendency to use harm reduction items should he or she engage in the risk-behaviour. The NIIDRBS provided insight into the associations between knowledge of HIV/HCV, health education, and behaviour, but the cross-sectional survey design limited rigorous evaluation of these relationships, particularly with respect to causal effects. An intervention study1, which captures information about knowledge and behaviour over time, including after release into the community, could provide more accurate information about the impact of health education on knowledge and knowledge on behaviour. Such research should explore why inmates continue to engage in risk-behaviours, despite adequate knowledge. Details: Ottawa: Correctional Service of Canada, 2010. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: Research Report 2010 No R-195: Accessed April 16, 2012 at: http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/rsrch/reports/r195/r195-eng.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Canada URL: http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/rsrch/reports/r195/r195-eng.pdf Shelf Number: 124987 Keywords: Drug OffendersHealth Care, PrisonsHIV (Viruses)Infectious DiseasesInmates, Drug Abusing (Canada)Prisoners, Drug Abusing |
Author: Taylor, Avril Title: An Evaluation of Post-Incident Management of Police and Prison Service Staff Occupationally Exposed to Blood and/or Body Fluids Summary: The aim of the evaluation was to describe and evaluate post-incident management services for preventing psychological and physical harm in police and prison staff exposed to blood-borne viruses in the work context. The objectives were: To ascertain how many police and prison staff notified their Occupational Health (OH) and Health and Safety (H&S) departments about an exposure to blood and/or body fluids over the study period; To collect data on each incident reported to OH departments in relation to the circumstances and care given by all those involved; and To evaluate current service provision in relation to post-incident advice and interventions to reduce psychological and physical harm and whether appropriate guidelines were followed. Details: Edinburgh: Scottish Government Social Research, 2009. 84p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 1, 2012 at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/268965/0079957.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/268965/0079957.pdf Shelf Number: 113929 Keywords: Health Care, Police and Prison StaffHIV (Viruses)Occupational Health ServicesPsychological Services, Police and Prison Staff |
Author: Delavande, Adeline Title: Violent Conflicts and Risky Sexual Behavior in Uganda Summary: This paper investigates the relationship between violent conflicts and risky sexual behavior in Uganda. The authors use geographical and temporal variation in conflict intensity and a difference-in-differences approach to evaluate how individual exposure to conflicts in the past 5 years influences the decision to engage in risky sex. They find that exposure to more conflicts leads to safer sex practice. They further investigate how the relationship between risky sexual behavior and violent conflict exposure varies depending on the malaria risk in the region where individuals live. They find a heterogeneous effect highlighting that behavioral response to an increase in conflict exposure varies by the burden of diseases an individual faces: additional conflict exposure leads to safer sex practice in places with high malaria-related mortality and to riskier sex practice in places with low malaria-related mortality. Details: Brighton, UK: MICRON,2011. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: MICROCON Research Working Paper 60; Accessed July 18, 2012 at: http://reliefweb.int/report/uganda/violent-conflicts-and-risky-sexual-behavior-uganda Year: 2011 Country: Uganda URL: http://reliefweb.int/report/uganda/violent-conflicts-and-risky-sexual-behavior-uganda Shelf Number: 125662 Keywords: HIV (Viruses)Sexual BehaviorViolence (Uganda) |
Author: Hoa, Tran Duc Title: Behind the Pleasure: Sexual Decision-Making Among High-Risk Men in Urban Vietnam Summary: Male clients of sex workers are a bridge population linking female sex workers to the general population, but their role in HIV prevention programs has been overlooked in Vietnam. In December 2004, FHI hosted a stakeholder meeting in Hanoi of national and international NGOs and United Nations agencies to discuss ways to increase male involvement in HIV/AIDS prevention. The discussion focused on engaging male clients of sex workers to become active in preventing HIV transmission to themselves and their wives or girlfriends. From April to June 2005, a research team comprised of FHI staff, consultants, representatives of NGOs and national social research agencies conducted a qualitative study of male clients of sex workers and other key informants. Candidates included men at high risk of purchasing sex, married women, and entertainment establishment owners. Researchers facilitated eighteen meetings, six each in Hanoi, Haiphong, and Ho Chi Minh City. In all, 324 candidates were interviewed. This report details the findings of the study and documents: • Behavior Patterns and Group Norms • Process of Sexual Decision Making • Reasons for Frequenting Sex Workers • What Makes a "Real" Man? • Male Responsibility Details: Durham, NC: FHI 360 (Family Health International), 2006. 84p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 18, 2012 at: http://www.fhi360.org/en/CountryProfiles/Vietnam/res_BehindThePleasure.htm Year: 2006 Country: Vietnam URL: http://www.fhi360.org/en/CountryProfiles/Vietnam/res_BehindThePleasure.htm Shelf Number: 125665 Keywords: HIV (Viruses)ProstitutesProstitutionSex Workers (Vietnam) |
Author: Atchison, Chris Title: Report of the Preliminary Findings for Johns' Voice: A Study of Adult Canadian Sex Buyers Summary: This research seeks to balance the stated objectives of understanding sex buyers' perspectives on risk and protective behaviors, and the decision-making processed involved in adopting these behaviours as they relate to HIV/AIDS. As such the research follows along Canadian research on sex buyers. Details: Burnaby, BC, Canada: Simon Fraser University, 2010. 37p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 20, 2012 at: http://24.85.225.7/johnsvoice/docs/JOHNS_VOICE_GENERAL_RESULTS_EXECUTIVE_ SUMMARY_FINAL_DIST.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Canada URL: Shelf Number: 125703 Keywords: HIV (Viruses)ProstitutesProstitutionSex BuyersSex Workers (Canada) |
Author: Maruschak, Laura M. Title: HIV in Prisons, 2001-2010 Summary: Presents national trends in the rates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS-related death rates among state and federal prison inmates from 2001 to 2010. The bulletin also presents annual statistics on HIV/AIDS for state and federal inmates by jurisdiction from 2008 to 2010. The number of cases is reported for males and females and distinguishes between inmates who tested positive for HIV and inmates with confirmed AIDS. Tables present the numbers and demographic characteristics of inmates who died from AIDS-related causes between 2008 and 2010. The report also compares AIDS-related death rates in the general U.S. population ages 15 to 54 with AIDS-related death rates in prison populations in that age group. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2012. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 20, 2012 at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/hivp10.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/hivp10.pdf Shelf Number: 126384 Keywords: AIDSHIV (Viruses)Inmates (U.S.) |
Author: McMillan, Karen Title: Risky Business Vanuatu: Selling Sex in Port Vila Summary: In November and December 2010, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 18 women and 2 young men who had had sex for money in the previous 12 months. Interviews took place in and around Port Vila, and were conducted in Bislama and in English. The interviews were designed to investigate the circumstances and context of local sex work in Port Vila. The study sample is non-random and therefore the results cannot be considered to be generalisable to all sex workers in Vanuatu. However, the type of sex work captured was consistent with the characteristics of typical sex work in Port Vila reported in a 2007 survey. The data presented here provides a nuanced description of the motivations for sex work, the conditions under which it occurs and the conceptualisations of client and other sexual relationships in the lives of the sex workers who participated in this study. This information should be valuable to those who wish to provide HIV prevention, sexual health and other services to sex workers in Port Vila. Participants were aged between 16 and 36 years old. The average age was 24 years. While most participants began sex work long before they were 18 years of age, all the sex work undertaken by study participants had been freely chosen, the sex workers operated independently. Sex work was very informal, and few of the interviewees explicitly self-identified as sex workers, despite regularly exchanging sex for money. Sex work occurred in the context of unemployment and lack of access to cash. The data also indicated that while exchanging sex for money was considered to be somewhat shameful and was practised covertly, it was also believed to be a common practice. Two distinct modes of selling sex were evident. In the first, small groups of sex workers frequented bars, nakamals and nightclubs in the evenings to find clients and the sexual encounter took place immediately after it was negotiated. In the second, the sex worker worked alone and meetings for sex were prearranged. In this second pattern, clients were regulars or had been found during daytime excursions to town and arrangements would be made to meet for sex later. These modes of operation were not exclusive and some interviewees adopted both. Those who worked exclusively in the second mode were the most covert in their activities and not part of any wider networks of sex worker friends. Sex work began at a young age. Most interviewees were younger than 16 years old when they began sex work, and some were as young as 11 and 12 years. While friends and peers played a central role in the introduction to sex work, none of the participants had been coerced into sex work. The money earned from sex work was primarily spent while in town, on consumer goods and also on food, drinks and kava while out with friends. Few interviewees needed their earnings for daily food and shelter; but for most participants, the money earned through sex work afforded them some independence and autonomy along with access to cash. Sex workers expressed a preference for condom use but were inconsistent in their use of condoms with clients. Condoms need to be free and at hand to maximise uptake. While the quality of condoms was raised as an issue, most sex workers would not pay for condoms. Conditions of privacy and confidentiality were also very important to whether sex workers would pick up free condoms. Privacy and confidentiality are not merely a matter of shame but may have implications for the personal safety of sex workers. Information about the protection that condom use offered from HIV and other sexually transmissible infections (STIs) had an impact on sex workers’ attitudes to condoms. There were many misconceptions about condoms and a poor understanding of the role they play in preventing STIs and HIV transmission. Some sex workers and some clients did not know how to put a condom on a man. Clients were both foreign and local. Local clients were particularly averse to condom use. Clients’ wishes usually determined whether or not condoms were used. Overall, the sex workers in this study were not confident or competent enough negotiators to convince a reluctant client to use a condom. Those sex workers who had accurate information about the role and efficacy of condoms in preventing HIV and STI transmission did actively encourage clients to use condoms. Nakamals, bars and nightclubs are common sex work sites, and kava and alcohol drinking and sex work are intertwined. The combination of alcohol and kava and sex work may exacerbate risk as intoxication compromised intentions to use condoms. Drinking was also reported to be associated with lowered inhibitions and more adventurous sex than usual. Watching pornographic films with clients was also associated with sexual experimentation, and viewing usually occurred in the context of a drinking session. Along with the hazards of excessive alcohol and kava consumption and the elevated risk -taking associated with intoxication, forced sex was another danger associated with sex work. The heightened vulnerability to rape and sexual assault, however, appeared to be a consequence of being publicly exposed as a sex worker. Sex workers were variously encouraged to stop sex work by their church and also by health service providers. Sometimes families of sex workers beat them to convince them to stop. For those interviewees who had agreed to give up sex work, the undertaking resulted in a more covert approach to sex work. Details: Sydney: International HIV Research Group School of Public Health and Community Medicine The University of New South Wales, 2011. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 27, 2012 at: http://www.pacs-rhrc.org/files/IHRG_Vanuatu_FINAL_2.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Australia URL: http://www.pacs-rhrc.org/files/IHRG_Vanuatu_FINAL_2.pdf Shelf Number: 126476 Keywords: HIV (Viruses)Human Immonodeficiency VirusProstitutionProstitution (Australia)Sex Workers |
Author: PROS Network Title: Public Health Crisis: The Impact of Using Condoms as Evidence of Prostitution in New York City Summary: The confiscation of condoms by police and the use of condoms as evidence of prostitution‐related offenses is a public health issue that has long been decried by human rights organizations and harm reduction service providers who interact with people in the sex trade and other vulnerable populations on a daily basis. This practice has been documented in cities across the United States, as well as in countries around the world for over a decade (Alliance for a Safe & Diverse DC 2008; Amnesty International 2005; Human Rights Watch 2004, 2006; Thukral & Ditmore 2003). PROS Network (Providers and Resources Offering Services to sex workers) members have been receiving reports from their clients and constituents for years that the police are confiscating their condoms during street encounters and arrests for prostitution‐related crimes. In response to concerns about the impact of this practice on the health and safety of their clients and constituents, the PROS Network has participated in two studies to document this practice and its effects, and to strengthen the case for policy reform around the use of condoms as evidence of prostitution. In the experience of PROS Network members, condom confiscation is primarily experienced by people who are– or are perceived to be–involved in the sex trades, as well as by lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) adults and youth of color, and street‐based and lower income communities. Ironically, these are some of the same populations that have been targeted for increased HIV prevention programming and condom distribution. In addition to directly conflicting with state public health policies and initiatives to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic, such as the distribution of free New York City condoms, the use of condom possession to prove evidence of intent to engage in prostitution‐related offenses is dangerously undermining people’s efforts to protect themselves and others, and discouraging people from carrying condoms. Fortunately, legislative measures have been introduced in New York to stop this harmful practice. In 1999, New York State Assembly Bill S.1645 was sponsored and introduced by State Senator Velmanette Montgomery (D – 18th District), who was later joined by State Assemblywoman Barbara M. Clark (D – 33rd District), to amend the civil practice law, the criminal procedure law, and the executive law to prohibit the introduction of condoms as evidence of prostitution and prostitution‐related offenses. At the time of this report’s publication, the current version of this legislation, Bill A1008/S323 is still under consideration by the New York State Senate Rules Committee and the New York State Assembly Codes Committee. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC DOHMH) partnered with the PROS Network between August and October 2010 to conduct a study to examine the prevalence of the confiscation of condoms by the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and the use of such condoms as evidence of prostitution‐related offenses in criminal cases (hereinafter referred to as “the DOHMH Study”). The survey was also designed to determine the extent to which this practice discouraged people from carrying condoms. One of the objectives of the DOHMH Study was to evaluate and highlight the public health impact of this practice in New York City. Target populations for the DOHMH Study included people in the sex trade and other populations accessing harm reduction services. Sixty‐three people participated in the survey, and the qualitative and quantitative survey data were analyzed and presented in a report completed in December 2010. However, the DOHMH Study was not released to the public until February 2012, when a partially redacted version was disclosed in response to a Freedom of Information Law request filed by Human Rights Watch. In the interim, the PROS Network decided in August 2011 to conduct additional research on the confiscation and use of condoms as evidence in New York City (hereinafter referred to as “the PROS Network Study”). The PROS Network Study was initiated with the aim of investigating and documenting the experiences of people in the sex trade and other communities with the policing of condoms. Another objective of the study was to raise awareness of the impacts that the New York City Police Department’s approach to enforcing prostitution laws has on the health, safety and human rights of people in the sex trade and other marginalized communities. Finally, the study was initiated with the objective of making recommendations to improve the treatment of people in the sex trade and other vulnerable populations by the NYPD; to improve the relations between these communities and the police; and to challenge police practices that actively hinder or obstruct access to HIV prevention resources. Details: New York: The PROS Network, Sex Workers Project, 2012. 74p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 29, 2012 at: http://sexworkersproject.org/downloads/2012/20120417-public-health-crisis.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://sexworkersproject.org/downloads/2012/20120417-public-health-crisis.pdf Shelf Number: 126491 Keywords: CondomsHIV (Viruses)Prostitutes ( New York City, U.S.)ProstitutionSex Workers |
Author: Godwin, John Title: Sex Work and the Law in Asia and the Pacific: Laws, HIV and Human Rights in the Context of Sex Work Summary: Nearly all countries of Asia and the Pacific criminalize some aspects of sex work. Criminalization increases vulnerability to HIV by fuelling stigma and discrimination, limits access to sexual health services and condoms. The report clearly distinguishes between adult consensual sex work and human trafficking for sexual exploitation. Removing legal penalties for sex work allows HIV prevention and treatment programmes to reach sex workers and their clients more effectively. These are some of the findings in an unprecedented study issued today by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Sex Work and the Law examines 48 countries in Asia and the Pacific to assess laws, legal policies and law enforcement practices that affect the human rights of sex workers and impact on the effectiveness of HIV responses. Where sex work has been decriminalized, there is a greater chance for safer sex practices through occupational health and safety standards across the industry. Furthermore, there is no evidence that decriminalization has increased sex work. The report describes countries that use punitive law enforcement practices, confiscate condoms as evidence of illegal conduct, require compulsory or coerced HIV testing, deny government services and certain rights to sex workers, and have compulsory detention centres. The report notes: •Eleven countries where sex workers report condom confiscation or police harassment for possessing condoms (China, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam). •Six countries that require mandatory testing of sex workers for HIV or sexually transmitted infections (STIs) as a condition of employment (Guam (unincorporated territory of the United States), Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and several states of Australia); and three countries where compulsory or coerced HIV testing for sex workers has been reported (China, India and Vietnam). •At least four countries in which compulsory detention of sex workers for rehabilitation or re-education is reported (China, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka). Roy, UNDP Asia-Pacific Regional Centre Manager. The report highlights current laws, policies and practices that are helpful to HIV responses. A snapshot: •Decisions of the Supreme Courts of Bangladesh, India and Nepal recognize the human rights of sex workers. •The Ministry of Interior of Cambodia issued a Directive that condoms will not be used as evidence for arrest. •Legislation in Fiji and Papua New Guinea make it unlawful to deny a person access to condoms or other means of protection from HIV. •National HIV laws in Cambodia, Fiji, Lao PDR, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines offer some protections in areas such as prohibition of compulsory testing, and rights to confidentiality and to protection from discrimination for those who are HIV-positive. •Legislation in Vietnam requires the government to implement harm reduction interventions including condom programmes with sex workers, and protects peer educators from prosecution. •Rules of the Social Security Fund of Thailand enable sex workers to access state social security benefits. The report also highlights how significant advances in recognition of the rights of sex workers can occur even in contexts where the sex industry is illegal. For example, education of police and empowerment of sex workers has helped to reduce human rights violations in India and Thailand, and health authorities in many countries now actively support sex worker organizations to deliver HIV prevention programmes to their peers. Details: Bangkok, Thailand: United Nations Development Programme, UNCP Asia-Pacific Regional Centre, 2012. 212p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 26, 2012 at: http://www.snap-undp.org/elibrary/Publication.aspx?ID=699 Year: 2012 Country: Asia URL: http://www.snap-undp.org/elibrary/Publication.aspx?ID=699 Shelf Number: 126809 Keywords: HIV (Viruses)Human TraffickingProstitutesProstitutionSex TraffickingSex Work (Asia)Sex WorkersSexually Transmitted Diseases |
Author: Thompson, Jill Title: Rape Sentencing Study: Statutory Sentencing Provisions for Rape, Defilement, and Sexual Assault in East, Central, and Southern Africa Summary: In the past ten to twelve years, several countries in East, Central and Southern Africa have responded to the problem of violence against women and children by amending outdated criminal laws relating to rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence. Legislative reforms have ranged from minor changes to existing penal code provisions, to major overhauls of sexual offences law. Changes have included redefining and/or adding new offences; making sexual offences gender neutral; putting in place evidentiary and procedural protections for victims; and increasing penalties for sexual crimes. As part of the reform process, several countries in the region have enacted mandatory minimum sentences for sexual offences such as rape and “defilement.” These have generally emerged in response to public outcry over high rates of sexual violence - particularly against children, and the widespread perception among the public and some lawmakers that perpetrators were not being adequately punished for these crimes. Proponents argued that high mandatory sentences would have a deterrent effect on sexual violence, and that victims would be more likely to report if they believed that perpetrators would be sent to jail. Others argued that statutory minimums would ensure appropriate retribution and lead to greater consistency in sentencing. A further rationale was found in the HIV epidemic - high sentences were viewed by many as necessary to curb the spread of HIV to women and children from sexual assault. Details: Lusaka, Zambia: Population Council, 2012. 40p. Source: Legislative Review: Internet Resource: Accessed December 16, 2012 at http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/2012RH_RapeSentencingStudy.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Africa URL: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/2012RH_RapeSentencingStudy.pdf Shelf Number: 127214 Keywords: AIDS (Disease)HIV (Viruses)LegislationRape (Africa)SentencingSexual AssaultSexual Violence |
Author: Nielsen Company Nepal Pvt. Ltd. Title: Mapping and Size Estimation of Most-At-Risk-Population in Nepal-2011. Vol. 1 Male Sex Workers, Transgenders & Their Clients. Summary: Nepal conducted a mapping and size estimation exercise of Most At Risk Population (MARPs) in consideration of the epidemic’s nature, availability of limited information on the MARP groups of Female Sex Workers (FSWs), Male Sex Workers,Transgenders and their Clients (MTCs), and Injecting Drug Users (IDUs) as well as the need for a more robust and evidence informed response to HIV for maximizing results. Details: Nepal: National Centre for AIDS and STD Control, Nepal, 2011. 104p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 3, 2013 at: http://www.aidsdatahub.org/dmdocuments/MTCs_final_report.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Nepal URL: http://www.aidsdatahub.org/dmdocuments/MTCs_final_report.pdf Shelf Number: 0 Keywords: AIDS (Disease)HIV (Viruses)Male ProstitutesMale Sex Workers (Nepal)Prostitution |
Author: Central and Eastern EuropeanHarm Reduction Network Title: Sex Work, HIV/AIDS, and Human Rights in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia Summary: Although sex work has a long history in nearly every culture and society, sex workers have been rarely, if ever, free from persecution, stigma, and violence. In some countries, notably in Western Europe, government officials and policymakers have worked with sex workers and their representatives in an effort to ease discrimination and improve access to health care and other social services. Such efforts have at times been slow and inconsistent; they are, however, major accomplishments compared with most nations elsewhere in the world. In Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, for example, sex workers remain among the most marginalized members of society. Policymakers and authorities view them as nuisances to be ignored or immoral lawbreakers rather than as individuals who can and should be protected from violence and receive social and economic assistance and support. At the same time, the surging HIV/AIDS epidemic in the region places sex workers at increasingly greater risk of infection not only from HIV, but also from other potentially debilitating conditions related to sex work and drug use. This report provides an overview of these and other important issues that sex workers face in the region as well as to the political, economic, and social factors that influence policies and attitudes toward sex workers. It focuses primarily on existing laws and policies and their consequences from the perspective of HIV prevention and treatment. The report also offers recommendations designed to uphold sex workers’ human rights and remove barriers that reduce their ability or willingness to obtain access to consistent and equitable health care and other social services. Details: Vilnius, 01114, Lithuania: Central and Eastern European Harm Reduction Network, 2005. 121p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 3, 2013 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/hiv-aids/publications/CEEAndCAsiaharm_05_sex_work_east_eur_0408.pdf Year: 2005 Country: Europe URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/hiv-aids/publications/CEEAndCAsiaharm_05_sex_work_east_eur_0408.pdf Shelf Number: 128614 Keywords: AIDS (Disease)HIV (Viruses)ProstitutesProstitutionSex Workers (Europe) |
Author: McCullough, Alison N. Title: An Evaluation of the Pre-Release Planning Program of the Georgia Department of Corrections and a Qualitative Assessment of Reentry Experiences of Program Participants Summary: Higher rates of HIV are seen within correctional systems across the United States. Georgia has one of the largest correctional populations in the country and HIV rates among prisoners are elevated when compared to the state as a whole. In 2008. 2.1% of state prisoners in Georgia were living with HIV. A focal point for the public health system is the moment of release and reentry into the community. Prison systems are responsible for the healthcare of persons in their custody and the public health system typically has limited access to this population until release. Federal programs like Ryan White seek to address the needs of underserved populations with limited access to HIV care. The Ryan White system has facilitated access to Georgia prisoners prior to release by funding the Pre-Release Planning Program, which provides case management and linkage to medical care for persons living with HIV in Georgia state prisons. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the Pre-Release Planning Program of the Georgia Department of Corrections and to identify reentry needs unique to persons living with HIV. An assessment of the program was conducted to determine strengths, weaknesses and areas for improvement. This assessment was informed by the post-release experiences of program participants who described their own reentry journeys through semi-structured qualitative interviews. Methods: For the purpose of this study secondary analysis was conducted on qualitative interviews. A convenience sample consisting of 45 Pre-Release Planning Program participants was recruited to complete a semi-structured qualitative interview following their release in 2009-2010. All 45 persons recruited consented to be contacted for an interview three to 12 months after release. A research interviewer successfully located 25 members of the original sample and they all agreed to participate. They completed an informed consent and were compensated with a cash incentive for their time. The interviews covered a broad range of topics related to: general reentry challenges, HIV, health, risk behaviors, and feelings about the Pre-Release Planning Program. In addition a structure and process evaluation of the Pre-release Planning Program was conducted within the framework of a quality improvement perspective. A stakeholder analysis identified persons and organizations best equipped to promote quality improvement efforts for this program. Recommendations for improvement were developed from the program evaluation and qualitative analysis of participants‟ reentry experiences. Results: Areas for improvement were identified for the Pre-Release Planning Program in both structure and process. The program is understaffed and incapable of reaching every person living with HIV in the Georgia Department of Corrections, more concrete linkages to community resources are sorely needed, and data collection and management activities are deficient. For former program participants three central needs were identified: housing, health (HIV, chronic conditions, and mental) and income (employment or benefits). Stigma (HIV and felony status) and risk behaviors (sexual and substance misuse) negatively impacted stability of housing, health and income. Overall the Pre-Release Planning Program was incapable of addressing most post-release barriers to HIV care and successful reentry. Strengths of the program included linkage to a Ryan White Clinic, provision of prison medical records, referrals to general social service agencies and its acceptability among interviewed participants. Participants reported appreciating the services available pre-release and were able to reflect on specific examples of how they were helpful. Conclusions: Qualitative analysis indicated that participants appreciated the Pre-Release Planning Program and deeply desired to address their health needs post-release. However, their reentry narratives illustrated a need for far more comprehensive pre-release and post-release services to ensure continuity of HIV care and successful reintegration into their home community. The structural and individual challenges faced by persons living with HIV leaving the prison system demand comprehensive integrated services to assure access to HIV care and avoid recidivism. Minimally, housing, health and income must be addressed to ensure successful reentry. To holistically attend to the needs of this population multiple forms of stigma and risk factors in the community must be mediated by working with the individual and promoting systemic changes. Social determinants of health affecting reentry experiences in Georgia must be addressed through policy changes which have the capacity to reach farther than a single Pre-Release Planning program nestled in the Department of Corrections. Details: Atlanta: Georgia State University, 2011. 55p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed May 30, 2013 at: http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1197&context=iph_theses Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1197&context=iph_theses Shelf Number: 128856 Keywords: Health CareHIV (Viruses)Prisoner ReentryPrisoners (Georgia, U.S.)Prisons |
Author: Chiu, Jessica Title: Punitive Drug Law and the Risk Environment for Injecting Drug Users: Understanding the Connections Summary: This paper, prepared for the Global Commission on HIV and the Law, reviews the evidence documenting the effects of punitive laws and law enforcement practices on the HIV risk environment for injecting drug users (IDUs). It then provides an overview of global drug policy, drawing on a mixture of regional reports and country case studies. Section lll summarises the adoption of harm reduction practices and policies. Finally, the paper looks at a selection of strategies that countries around the world have implemented to improve the HIV risk environment for IDUs. These include interventions to make law enforcement less harmful and more conducive to health; the integration of harm reduction and drug treatment programmes into the criminal justice system; and changes to national anti-drug laws for possession and individual use that move away from punitive anti-drug penalties. Details: Philadelphia: Temple University, School of Law, 2011. 58p. Source: Internet Resource: Working paper prepared for the Third Meeting of the Technical Advisory Group of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law, 7-9 July 2011: Accessed May 30, 2013 at: http://www.hivlawcommission.org/index.php/working-papers?task=document.viewdoc&id=98 Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.hivlawcommission.org/index.php/working-papers?task=document.viewdoc&id=98 Shelf Number: 128860 Keywords: Drug Abuse and AddictionDrug Law EnforcementDrug PolicyHIV (Viruses) |
Author: British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. Urban Health Research Initiative Title: Drug Situation in Vancouver. Second Edition. Summary: The Drug Situation in Vancouver report includes detailed information on drug use trends, drug availability, HIV rates, and behaviours among some of the city’s most vulnerable people who use illicit drugs. The analysis found: • Fewer people using injection drugs • Significant decrease in syringe sharing and related HIV and hepatitis C transmissions • Increase in drug cessation and access to addiction treatment • Unchanged ease of access to and affordability of illicit drugs Among people who use drugs in Vancouver, methadone maintenance treatment increased from 11.7 per cent in 1996 to 54.5 per cent in 2008, remaining stable since. In addition, reports of difficulty accessing addiction treatment dropped from 19.9 per cent in 1996 to as low as 3.2 per cent in 2006, and has remained below 1996 levels. There was a corresponding upward trend of injection drug use cessation during a similar period, with a rate of just 0.4 per cent in 1996 compared to 46.6 per cent in 2011. Conversely, researchers found between 2000 and 2011 illicit drugs remained easily accessible and prices were stable. Details: Vancouver, BC: Urban Health Research Initiative, 2013. 62p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 1, 2013 at: http://uhri.cfenet.ubc.ca/images/Documents/dsiv2013.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Canada URL: http://uhri.cfenet.ubc.ca/images/Documents/dsiv2013.pdf Shelf Number: 129228 Keywords: Drug Abuse and Addiction (Vancouver, Canada)Drug Abuse TreatmentDrug OffendersHIV (Viruses) |
Author: Global Commission on Drug Policy Title: The War on Drugs and HIV/AIDS: How the Criminalization of Drug Use Fuels the Global Pandemic Summary: The global war on drugs is driving the HIV/AIDS pandemic among people who use drugs and their sexual partners. Throughout the world, research has consistently shown that repressive drug law enforcement practices force drug users away from public health services and into hidden environments where HIV risk becomes markedly elevated. Mass incarceration of non-violent drug offenders also plays a major role in increasing HIV risk. This is a critical public health issue in many countries, including the United States, where as many as 25 percent of Americans infected with HIV may pass through correctional facilities annually, and where disproportionate incarceration rates are among the key reasons for markedly higher HIV rates among African Americans. Aggressive law enforcement practices targeting drug users have also been proven to create barriers to HIV treatment. Despite the evidence that treatment of HIV infection dramatically reduces the risk of HIV transmission by infected individuals, the public health implications of HIV treatment disruptions resulting from drug law enforcement tactics have not been appropriately recognized as a major impediment to efforts to control the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. The war on drugs has also led to a policy distortion whereby evidence-based addiction treatment and public health measures have been downplayed or ignored. While this is a common problem internationally, a number of specific countries, including the US, Russia and Thailand, ignore scientific evidence and World Health Organization recommendations and resist the implementation of evidence-based HIV prevention programs – with devastating consequences. In Russia, for example, approximately one in one hundred adults is now infected with HIV. In contrast, countries that have adopted evidence-based addiction treatment and public health measures have seen their HIV epidemics among people who use drugs – as well as rates of injecting drug use – dramatically decline. Clear consensus guidelines exist for achieving this success, but HIV prevention tools have been under-utilized while harmful drug war policies have been slow to change. Details: Rio de Janeiro: Global Commission on Drug Policy, 2012. 24p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 10, 2013 at: http://globalcommissionondrugs.org/wp-content/themes/gcdp_v1/pdf/GCDP_HIV-AIDS_2012_REFERENCE.pdf Year: 2012 Country: International URL: http://globalcommissionondrugs.org/wp-content/themes/gcdp_v1/pdf/GCDP_HIV-AIDS_2012_REFERENCE.pdf Shelf Number: 129353 Keywords: Drug Abuse and AddictionDrug ControlDrug PolicyHIV (Viruses)War on Drugs (International) |
Author: MacQuarrie, Kerry L.D. Title: Spousal Violence and HIV: Exploring the Linkages in Five Sub-Saharan African Countries Summary: Over the past decade a consensus has been growing that intimate partner violence contributes to women's vulnerability to HIV. A diverse body of research has explored this association, mostly in the developing world. Studies based on women who present at health clinics often report a significantly higher prevalence of intimate partner violence among HIV-positive women compared with HIV-negative women. Moreover, six of seven studies using nationally representative samples reported a significant association between some form of violence and HIV status. The usual interpretation is that spousal violence increases the risk of HIV for women. Yet a direct effect on HIV status is unlikely, since there is no apparent direct causal pathway leading from most forms of spousal violence to the acquisition of HIV. This study contributes to an understanding of the relationship between spousal violence and HIV by taking advantage of data from both members of a couple and using discrete, nuanced measures of spousal violence to better specify the associated pathways through which violence influences HIV. We propose a gender-based conceptual framework in which the association between a woman's experience of spousal violence and her HIV status is mediated by two primary pathways: First, the HIV risk behaviors/factors of her husband and, second, her own behavioral and situational HIV risk factors. Both of these factors have been associated with violence experienced by women and perpetrated by men. This study uses data on married couples from six Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) in five sub- Saharan countries: Kenya 2008-09, Malawi 2010, Rwanda 2005, Rwanda 2010, Zambia 2007, and Zimbabwe 2010-11. These surveys included HIV testing for both women and men and also the domestic violence module, thus providing a subsample of married or cohabiting couples by their experience of violence and their HIV status. We examine the direct or indirect linkages between spousal violence and women's HIV status. We also explore the association between spousal violence and wives' and husbands' HIV risk factors. Specifically, we include the following factors: lifetime number of sexual partners; STI or STI symptoms in the last 12 months; and for husbands only, non-marital sex in the past 12 months; having paid for sex; alcohol use; and husband's HIV status. We consider several forms of spousal violence (emotional, physical, and sexual violence) and husbands' controlling behaviors. In keeping with the conceptual framework, we develop a series of statistical analyses to test the direct effect of spousal violence on women's HIV status and the role of HIV risk factors as mediators. The results reveal a strikingly common structure of what constitutes violence across the five countries. Five factors emerge in each country: (1) suspicion, (2) isolation, (3) emotional violence, (4) physical violence, and (5) sexual violence. These five factors account for 57 to 66 percent of the variance among the items in each country. Our factor analysis upholds the validity of experts' assignment of the various acts of spousal violence to the categories of emotional, physical, or sexual violence. An important additional insight is that the six items typically categorized as controlling behavior actually represent not one construct, but two separate constructs-suspicion and isolation-which are distinct from emotional, physical, or sexual violence. The study finds a significant association between multiple forms of violence and women's HIV status, after adjusting for wives' and husbands' socio-demographic characteristics but not risk factors. Yet, no single form of spousal violence is consistently associated with women's HIV status in all five countries. A significant relationship is found with women's HIV status for the controlling behaviors suspicion and isolation in Zambia and Zimbabwe; for emotional violence in Kenya, Rwanda and Zimbabwe; for physical violence, in Kenya, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe; and in no country for sexual violence, the least prevalent form of violence among study couples. In Malawi no form of violence is associated with a wife's risk of having HIV. In all five countries both HIV risk factors for women - lifetime number of sexual partners and recent STI or STI symptoms - are significantly associated with their having HIV, after controlling for background characteristics but not for each other. Most of the spousal violence measures are associated with both wives' HIV risk factors in each country. The most prominent predictor of a woman's HIV status is her husband's HIV status, among all the men's factors considered. Numerous husbands' HIV risk factors are associated with their wives' HIV status, but far less consistently than either husbands' HIV status or women's risk factors. The association between the experience of spousal violence and husbands' risk factors, too, is weaker and less consistent than with women's risk factors. Nevertheless, multiple relationships between spousal violence and wives' and their husbands' risk factors on one hand, and between wives' and husbands' risk factors and women's HIV status on the other, suggest that there are several possible mediators between various forms of spousal violence and women's HIV status. Indeed, when either wives' risk factors or husbands' risk factors, or both combined, are added to our models, most spousal violence factors are no longer a significant predictor of women's HIV status. The only form of spousal violence that appears to have a direct net association with HIV is physical violence, which remains significant in all models in Kenya and Zimbabwe. For almost all forms of violence (physical violence being the exception) and in all five countries, any observed significant relationship of spousal violence with a woman's HIV status is explained away by wives' or husband's HIV risk factors. The study provides evidence that there is no direct effect of most forms of spousal violence on women's HIV status, only an indirect effect through selected behavioral and other factors commonly considered to put an individual at high risk of HIV. The finding that sexual violence is not associated with women's HIV status, even before considering any mediating risk factors, deserves further exploration. Similarly, investigation is warranted to ascertain why physical violence continues to be associated with women's HIV status after controlling for these risk factors. Details: Calverton, MD: ICF International, 2013. 71p. Source: Internet Resource: DHS Analytical Studies No. 36: Accessed November 13, 2013 at: http://www.measuredhs.com/pubs/pdf/AS36/AS36.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Africa URL: http://www.measuredhs.com/pubs/pdf/AS36/AS36.pdf Shelf Number: 131654 Keywords: Family ViolenceGender-Based ViolenceHIV (Viruses)Intimate Partner ViolenceSexual ViolenceSpouse Abuse (Africa)Violence Against Women |
Author: Mbete, Bibi Title: HIV, Harm Reduction and Drug Policy in Kenya Summary: Kenya - like most countries - has a long tradition of punitive drug policy responses that seek to eradicate drug use and trade. This is in keeping with the prohibitionist approach that has been dominant across the world for more than 100 years, despite overwhelming evidence that this approach contributes to high levels of HIV transmission among people who inject drugs, as well as many other harms. In recent years, civil society organisations in Kenya have started to adopt programmes and practices that focus more on public health and human rights - supported mainly with funding from international donors and technical assistance from international non-governmental organisations. As part of this effort, the Kenyan Ministry of Health has recently introduced guidelines and strategies for targeted and evidence-based harm reduction interventions for people who use drugs (see Box 1), as part of its HIV response. This briefing paper aims to review the recent developments in the response to HIV and illicit drug use in Kenya, and highlights some key recommendations to address the remaining challenges and issues. Details: London: International Drug Policy Consortium, 2013. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: IDPC Briefing Paper: Accessed May 12, 2014 at: http://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/64663568/library/IDPC-briefing-paper_drug-policy-harm-reduction-Kenya.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Kenya URL: http://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/64663568/library/IDPC-briefing-paper_drug-policy-harm-reduction-Kenya.pdf Shelf Number: 132329 Keywords: Drug Abuse and AddictionDrug Policy (Kenya)Drug ReformHIV (Viruses)Illicit Drugs |
Author: Khan, M.E. Title: Sexuality, Gender Roles, and Domestic Violence in South Asia Summary: The Population Council has recently released a report titled 'Sexuality, Gender Roles and Domestic Violence in South Asia.' The report involves a wealth of data about patterns of sexuality and gender inequities, which have serious consequences in relation to the spread of HIV infections in the region. A key finding of the report is that women are often unable to negotiate the use of contraception and other safe sex practices in domestic relationships. The dynamics of gender inequalities in South Asia make it very difficult for women to protect themselves against possible HIV and sexually transmitted infection risks. Another key message is that young men and women often have little knowledge about reproductive health and sex, because of a lack of information. Details: New York: Population Council, 2014. 373p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 12, 2014 at: http://www.popcouncil.org/uploads/pdfs/2014RH_SGBVSouthAsia.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Asia URL: http://www.popcouncil.org/uploads/pdfs/2014RH_SGBVSouthAsia.pdf Shelf Number: 134040 Keywords: Domestic Violence (Asia)Family ViolenceGender-Based ViolenceHIV (Viruses)Intimate Partner ViolenceViolence Against Women |
Author: Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT) Title: Estimating the Size of the Sex Worker Population in South Africa, 2013 Summary: The South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) is tasked with coordinating the country's response to HIV, TB and STIs across all government departments and civil society sectors, monitoring the implementation of the National Strategic Plan (NSP) aimed at responding to these three epidemics; as well as mobilising resources for the effective functioning of SANAC and the implementation of the NSP. SANAC recognises that, like the rest of the South African population where 5.6 million people are estimated to be living with HIV, sex workers are at a much higher risk of HIV, TB and STIs compared to the general population. As a result, it is important for our country to have programmes specifically tailor-made to target the health needs of this sector of society. In this light, the SANAC Secretariat is working with the SANAC Sex Worker Sector and numerous organisations providing advocacy and services for sex workers to establish a national programme for HIV prevention among sex workers and their clients and partners. Sex workers are highly vulnerable to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) due to multiple factors, including large numbers of sex partners, unsafe working conditions and barriers to the negotiation of consistent condom use. Moreover, sex workers often have little control over these factors because of social marginalisation and the restricted legal framework under which they are forced to work. Alcohol, drug use and violence further exacerbate their vulnerability and risk. HIV prevalence rates amongst female sex workers are thought to be as high as 59.6%1, compared to 13.3% amongst women in the general population. This calls for an urgent scaled-up, coordinated national HIV prevention programme for sex workers. However, when designing targeted interventions as part of an expanded and comprehensive response to HIV and AIDS, reliable information is required on the size of high-risk population groups such as this one. While South Africa is able to measure the level of risk behaviour and HIV and STI infection in sex workers, there is limited data to give an indication of the absolute size of this sub-population. Recognising this as a limitation, SANAC commissioned a sex worker size estimation study, and the results are presented in this report. The work was carried out by multiple partners under the leadership of the Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Task Force (SWEAT). Up until now, there have been various estimates of the number of sex workers in the country. The inaccuracy of these figures has proven to be a hindrance for programme planning and implementation. No concerted effort had ever been made to estimate the total size of the sex worker population in the country. This survey marks a new chapter in South Africas response to HIV and AIDS. It will provide the government and other stakeholders with data to make evidence-based decisions on how to create an enabling environment for the provision and accessibility of preventive services for sex workers in South Africa. The findings of this sex worker population size estimate will lead to concerted efforts for the design of comprehensive programming, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of targeted intervention programmes. Details: Observatory, South Africa: SWEAT, 2015. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 21, 2015 at: http://www.health-e.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Sex-Workers-Size-Estimation-2013.pdf Year: 2015 Country: South Africa URL: http://www.health-e.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Sex-Workers-Size-Estimation-2013.pdf Shelf Number: 134431 Keywords: HIV (Viruses)ProstitutesProstitutionSex Workers (South Africa) |