Motivators and barriers to HIV testing among street-based female sex workers in St. Petersburg, Russia

ABSTRACT

Female sex workers are particularly susceptible to HIV-infection in Russia. However, a dearth of information exists on their utilisation of HIV services. A mixed-methods, cross-sectional study was conducted to examine motivators and barriers to HIV testing among street-based sex workers in St. Petersburg, Russia. The health belief model was the theoretical framework for the study. Twenty-nine sex workers participated in in-depth interviews, and 139 sex workers completed interviewer-administered surveys between February and September 2009. Barriers to getting an HIV test were fear of learning the results, worrying that other people would think they were sick, and the distance needed to travel to obtain services. Motivators for getting tested were protecting others from infection, wanting to know one's status and getting treatment if diagnosed. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that knowing people living with HIV [aOR = 6.75, 95% CI (1.11, 41.10)] and length of time since start of injection drug use [aOR = 0.30, 95% CI (0.09, 0.97)] were significantly associated with recently getting tested. These results are important to consider when developing public health interventions to help female sex workers in Russia learn their HIV status and get linked to care and treatment services if needed.

KEYWORDS:

• HIV testing
• sex workers
• Russia

Acknowledgement

The content of the manuscript is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the views of the funding agencies.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Award; a Travel Award from The Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; a Royster's Society of Fellows Doctoral Dissertation Completion Fellowship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; and a Postdoctoral Training Grant at Yale University's Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS from the National Institute of Mental Health [grant number T32MH020031].