Abstract
Aim
HIV testing for vulnerable populations such as female sex workers (FSWs) is a critical step to achieve the first 90s proposed by UNAIDS. However, the level of readiness for an HIV test and associated factors among FSWs have been rarely studied in Tigray, though it is a proxy indicator of HIV testing. Thus, this study aimed at assessing the readiness level for an HIV test and associated factors among FSWs.
Subjects and methods
A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted and 368 FSWs were recruited using systematic random sampling in Shire Endaselassie from March 2 to 30, 2018. Data were collected via a structured and pretested questionnaire. The data were entered into Epi Info 7 and then exported to SPSS 20 for analysis. Both descriptive and inferential analyses were done with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) at a p-value of less than 5% for the final model.
Results
The overall readiness level for HIV testing among FSWs was 53.2%. Educational status [adjusted odds ratio, AOR (95% CI) = 1.74 (1.07–2.85)], vulnerability to HIV [AOR (95% CI) = 2.45 (1.38–4.42)], fear of HIV testing [AOR (95% CI) = 0.48 (0.29–0.77)], planning to leave sex work [AOR (95% CI) = 1.79 (1.05–3.08)], fear of quick development of severe signs and symptoms [AOR (95% CI) = 0.53 (0.33–0.86)], being a member of women development groups [AOR (95% CI) = 2.79 (1.74–4.45)], and encountering condom breakage [AOR (95% CI) = 0.43 (0.27–0.68)] were found to be associated with readiness level.
Conclusion
The readiness level for HIV testing was relatively low. Most of the social and psychosocial issues were found to be factors that influence the readiness level for HIV testing among FSWs. Thus, efforts should be made to develop educational programs that boost the level of awareness and readiness of FSWs for HIV testing.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aho J, Nguyen VK, Diakité SL, Sow A, Koushik A, Rashed S (2012) High acceptability of HIV voluntary counselling and testing among female sex workers: impact of individual and social factors. HIV Med 13(3):156–165. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-1293.2011.00951.x
Amu EO, Ijadunola KT, Bamidele JO, Odu OO (2013) Barriers to and determinants of HIV counselling and testing among adults in Ayedaade Local Government Area, Osun State, Nigeria. J Med Sci 13(8):803–808. https://doi.org/10.3923/jms.2013.803.808
Bekker LG, Johnson L, Cowan F, Overs C, Besada D, Hillier S, Cates W Jr (2015) Combination HIV prevention for female sex workers: what is the evidence? Lancet 385(9962):72–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60974-0
Berhane Y, Mekonnen Y, Seyoum E, Gelmon L, Wilson D (2008) HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia: an epidemiological synthesis. http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/660061468315834425/HIV-AIDS-in-Ethiopia-an-epidemiological-synthesis
Bogale S (2017) Analysis: HIV/AIDS is surging in Ethiopia, again. http://addisstandard.com/analysis-hivaids-is-surging-in-ethiopia-again
Chanda MM, Perez-Brumer AG, Ortblad KF, Mwale M, Chongo S, Kamungoma N, Kanchele C, Fullem A, Barresi L, Bärnighausen T, Oldenburg CE (2017) Barriers and facilitators to HIV testing among Zambian female sex workers in three transit hubs. AIDS Patient Care STDs 31(7):290–296. https://doi.org/10.1089/apc.2017.0016
Dokubo EK, Shiraishi RW, Young PW, Neal JJ, Aberle-Grasse J, Honwana N, Mbofana F (2014) Awareness of HIV status, prevention knowledge and condom use among people living with HIV in Mozambique. PLoS One 9(9):e106760. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0106760
Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) (2017) HIV related estimates and projections for Ethiopia—2017. March 2017. Addis Ababa. https://www.ephi.gov.et/images/pictures/download2009/HIV_estimation_and_projection_for_Ethiopia_2017.pdf
Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) (2014) National guidelines for comprehensive HIV prevention, care and treatment. https://aidsfree.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/ethiopia_natl_gl_2014.pdf
Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) (2015) Health sector transformation plan. HIV AIDS. https://www.slideshare.net/FMoH/ethiopian-health-sector-transformation-plan
Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) (2016a) Ethiopia. Demographic and health survey 2016. HIV report. https://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/FR328/FR328.HIV.pdf
Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) (2016b) National guidelines for HIV prevention treatment and care. http://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/documents/s23252en/s23252en.pdf
Fonner VA, Kerrigan D, Mnisi Z, Ketende S, Kennedy CE, Baral S (2014) Social cohesion, social participation, and HIV related risk among female sex workers in Swaziland. PLoS One 9(1):e87527. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0087527
Fylkesnes K, Siziya S (2004) A randomized trial on acceptability of voluntary HIV counselling and testing. Trop Med Int Health 9(5):566–572. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3156.2004.01231.x
Getnet MK, Damen HM (2011) Level of stigma among female sex workers: comparison of two surveys of HIV behavioral data, Ethiopia. Afr Health Sci 11(4):543–549
Idris AK, Elsamani EZ, Elnasri AE (2015) Sociodemographic predictors of acceptance of voluntary HIV testing among pregnant women in a large maternity hospital, Omdurman, Sudan. East Mediterr Health J 21(4):273–279 http://www.who.int/iris/handle/10665/255103
Madiba S, Mokgatle M (2015) “Students want HIV testing in schools” a formative evaluation of the acceptability of HIV testing and counselling at schools in Gauteng and North West provinces in South Africa. BMC Public Health 15:388. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-015-1746-x
Moges Z, Amberbir A (2011) Factors associated with readiness to VCT service utilization among pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in northwestern Ethiopia: a health belief model approach. Ethiop J Health Sci 21(1):107–115
Qiao S, Zhang Y, Li X, Menon JA (2018) Facilitators and barriers for HIV-testing in Zambia: a systematic review of multi-level factors. PLoS One 13(2):e0192327. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0192327
Raviglione M, Maher D (2017) Ending infectious diseases in the era of the Sustainable Development Goals. Porto Biomed J 2(5):140–142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbj.2017.08.001
Setlhare K, Manyeagae GD (2017) Factors associated with HIV testing among female sex workers in Botswana. J AIDS HIV Res 9(2):42–51. https://doi.org/10.5897/JAHR2016.0404
Shannon K, Strathdee SA, Goldenberg SM, Duff P, Mwangi P, Rusakova M, Reza-Paul S, Lau J, Deering K, Pickles MR, Boily MC (2015) Global epidemiology of HIV among female sex workers: influence of structural determinants. Lancet 385(9962):55–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60931-4
Teklehaimanot HD, Teklehaimanot A, Yohannes M, Biratu D (2016) Factors influencing the uptake of voluntary HIV counseling and testing in rural Ethiopia: a cross sectional study. BMC Public Health 16:239. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-2918-z
Tokar A, Broerse JE, Blanchard J, Roura M (2018) HIV testing and counseling among female sex workers: a systematic literature review. AIDS Behav 2(8):2435–2457. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-018-2043-3
Tran BX, Nguyen LT, Nguyen NP, Phan HT (2013) HIV voluntary testing and perceived risk among female sex workers in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. Glob Health Action 6:20690. https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v6i0.20690
UNAIDS (2014) Sex workers. The gap report 2014. UNAIDS, Geneva, Switzerland. http://www.unaids.org/sites/default/files/media_asset/06_Sexworkers.pdf
Wang Y, Li B, Zheng J, Sengupta S, Emrick CB, Cohen MS, Henderson GE (2009) Factors related to female sex workers’ willingness to utilize VCT service: a qualitative study in Jinan City, northern China. AIDS Behav 13(5):866–872. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-008-9446-5
Wang Y, Pan JB, Wang XF, Li B, Henderson G, Emrick CB, Sengupta S, Cohen M (2010) Reported willingness and associated factors related to utilization of voluntary counseling and testing services by female sex workers in Shandong Province, China. Biomed Environ Sci 23(6):466–472. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0895-3988(11)60009-3
Wanyenze RK, Musinguzi G, Kiguli J, Nuwaha F, Mujisha G, Musinguzi J, Arinaitwe J, Matovu JK (2017) “When they know that you are a sex worker, you will be the last person to be treated”: perceptions and experiences of female sex workers in accessing HIV services in Uganda. BMC Int Health Hum Rights 17(11):11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12914-017-0119-1
WoHO (2017) Annual Shire Endaselassie town health report HIV AIDS activities report. Shire Endaselassie
World Health Organization (WHO) (2012) Prevention and treatment of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections for sex workers in low- and middle-income countries. WHO, Geneva, Switzerland
World Health Organization (WHO) (2015) Consolidated guidelines on HIV testing services. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/179870/9789241508926_eng.pdf;jsessionid=30E633010579F00CF5817E8AA957D0B6?sequence=1
Yuan L, Li X, Li X, Shi J, Jiang L, Zhang C, Yang X, Zhang Y, Zhao Y (2012) Factors associated with willingness to participate in free HIV test among general residents in Heilongjiang, Northeast China. BMC Infect Dis 12:256. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2334-12-256
Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge Mekelle University, Federal Ministry of Health, and the regional health bureau as well as Endaselassie Woreda health office for the overall support and facilitating the conduct of this study. We would also like to thank Mulu Project for providing us with the list of FSWs in the town. We are also grateful to all the study participants, data collectors, supervisors, and care providers, without whom this work would not have been possible.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
The study was designed by AT, MT, and AG. AT was responsible for data collection, analysis, and drafting the manuscript. MT reviewed the study design and revised the manuscript. AG supervised the data collection and analysis, revised the manuscript, and contributed to interpretation of the analysis. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tsadik, M., Tesfahunegn, A. & Gebreyesus, A. Readiness of female sex workers for HIV testing and its associated factors in Shire Endaselassie town, Tigray, Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study. J Public Health (Berl.) 28, 285–292 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-019-01045-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-019-01045-9