Abstract
This paper describes patterns of injecting drug use and blood borne virus (BBV)-related risk practices among Australian Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people who inject drugs (PWID). A total of 588 participants, 120 of whom self-identified as Aboriginal completed a questionnaire. Aboriginal participants were more likely to have been in prison (37.6 vs. 16.5 %), to inject daily (72.7 vs. 55.0 %), to share ancillary equipment (64.9 vs. 44.8 %) and less likely to know about BBV transmission (72.0 vs. 87.7 %) and treatment (47.2 vs. 67.6 %). Aboriginal participants used services such as BBV testing and drug treatment at a comparable rate to non-Aboriginal participants. The findings suggest that Aboriginal PWID are at greater risk for acquiring BBV. The prison setting should be used to deliver health promotion information and risk reduction messages. More information is needed on Aboriginal people’s access and use of services to ensure beneficial services are received in the most appropriate settings.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. Third national hepatitis C strategy 2010–2013. Barton: Commonwealth of Australia; 2010.
Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. Sixth national HIV strategy 2010–2013. Barton: Commonwealth of Australia; 2010.
Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander blood borne viruses and sexually transmitted infections strategy 2010–2013. Barton: Commonwealth of Australia; 2010.
Australian Bureau of Statistics. Population characteristics, Aboriginal and torres strait islander Australians, 2006. 2010. http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/526FE126443EBCC6CA257718001D547F/$File/47130_2006_reissue.pdf. Accessed 4 May 2010, 7 Dec 2010.
Day C, Ross J, Dolan K. Characteristics of Aboriginal injecting drug users in Sydney, Australia: prison history, hepatitis C status and drug treatment experiences. J Ethn Subst Abuse. 2003;2(3):51–8.
Roberts C, Crofts N. Hitting up in the top end: characteristics of needle exchange clients in Darwin. Aust NZ J Public Health. 2000;24(1):82–5.
Maher L, Chant K, Jalaludin B, Sargent P. Risk behaviors and antibody hepatitis B and C prevalence among injecting drug users in south-western Sydney, Australia. J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2004;19(10):1114–20.
Iversen J, Wand H, Gonnermann A, Maher L. Gender differences in hepatitis C antibody prevalence and risk behaviours amongst people who inject drugs in Australia 1998–2008. Int J Drug Policy. 2010;21:471–6.
National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research. Bloodborne viral and sexually transmitted infections in Aboriginal and torres strait islander people: surveillance and evaluation report 2010. Sydney: The University of New South Wales; 2010.
van der Poorten D, Kenny DT, George J. Prevalence of and risk factors for hepatitis C in Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal adolescent offenders. Med J Aust. 2008;188(10):610–4.
Dolan K, Teutsch S, Scheuer N, Levy M, Rawlinson W, Kaldor J, et al. Incidence and risk for acute hepatitis C infection during imprisonment in Australia. Eur J Epidemiol. 2010;25(2):143–8.
Macalino GE, Hou JC, Kumar MS, Taylor LE, Sumantera IG, Rich JD. Hepatitis C infection and incarcerated populations. Int J Drug Policy. 2004;15(2):103–14.
Ward J, Topp L, Iversen J, Wand H, Akre S, Kaldor J, et al. Higher HCV antibody prevalence among Indigenous clients of needle and syringe programs. Aust NZ J Public Health. 2011;35(5):421–6.
Larson A, Shannon C, Eldridge C. Indigenous Australians who inject drugs: results from a Brisbane study. Drug Alcohol Rev. 1999;18(1):53–62.
Bryant J, Wilson H, Hull P, Treloar C. Pharmacy needle and syringe survey, New South Wales 2006–2008. Sydney: National Centre in HIV Social Research, The University of New South Wales; 2010.
Parker EJ, Jamieson LM. Associations between indigenous Australian oral health literacy and self-reported oral health outcomes. BMC Oral Health. 2010;10:3. doi:10.1186/1472-6831-10-3.
Beckwith CG, Zaller ND, Fu JJ, Montague BT, Rich JD. Opportunities to diagnose, treat, and prevent HIV in the criminal justice system. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2010;55(Suppl. 1):S49–55.
Abou-Saleh MT, Foley S. Prevalence and incidence of hepatitis C in drug users: a review. Addict Disord Treat. 2008;7(4):190–8.
Junga-Williams R. For all Australians? Natl AIDS Bull. 1998;12(3):10–3.
Ward J, Bryant J, Worth H, Hull P, Solar S, Bailey S. Use of health services for sexually transmitted and blood-borne viral infections by young Aboriginal people in New South Wales. doi:10.1071/PY11032.
Balsam KF, Huang B, Fieland KC, Simoni JM, Walters KL. Culture, trauma, and wellness: a comparison of heterosexual and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and two-spirit native Americans. Cultur Divers Ethnic Minor Psychol. 2004;10(3):287–301.
Gilley BJ. Native sexual inequalities: american indian cultural conservative homophobia and the problem of tradition. Sexualities. 2010;13(1):47–68.
Lehavot K, Walters KL, Simoni JM. Abuse, mastery, and health among lesbian, bisexual, and two-spirit American Indian and Alaska native women. Cultur Divers Ethnic Minor Psychol. 2009;15(3):275–84.
National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research. Australian NSP survey national data report 2005–2009. Sydney: National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research, The University of New South Wales; 2010.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the excellent support and advice provided by the projects’ Aboriginal Advisory Group, including James Ward, Peter Pattison, Peter Waples-Crowe, and Kristie Harrison. The project was financially supported by the Consortium for Social Policy Research on HIV, HCV and Related Diseases. The authors thank Sofia Lema and Sallie Cairnduff for their contributions to the manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Paquette, D., McEwan, M. & Bryant, J. Risk Practices Among Aboriginal People Who Inject Drugs in New South Wales, Australia. AIDS Behav 17, 2467–2473 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-012-0226-x
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-012-0226-x