Formative assessment to identify perceived benefits and barriers of HIV oral self-testing among female sex workers, service providers, outreach workers, and peer educators to inform scale-up in Kenya

Details

• Alternative Title:
  AIDS Care
• Personal Author:
  Agot, Kawango ; Cain, Meagan ; Medley, Amy ; Kimani, Joshua ; Gichangi, Peter ; Kiio, Caroline ; Mukiri, Elosy ; Odonde, Petronila ; Toroitich-Ruto, Cathy ; Bingham, Trista ; Downer, Marie ; Chesang, Kipruto
• Description:
  In Kenya, HIV prevalence estimates among female sex workers (FSWs) are almost five times higher than among women in the general population. However, only 68% of infected FSWs are aware of their HIV-positive status. We aimed to identify perceived benefits, opportunities, and barriers of HIV self-testing (HIVST) in improving testing coverage among FSWs. Twenty focus group discussions were conducted with 77 service providers, 42 peer educators (PEs) and outreach workers, and 37 FSWs attending drop-in centers (DiCEs) in four regions of Kenya. An additional 8 FSWs with HIV-negative or unknown status-completed in-depth interviews. Data were analyzed thematically. Acceptability of HIVST was high, with cited benefits including confidentiality, convenience, and ease of use. Barriers included absence of counseling, potential for inaccurate results, fear of partner reaction, possible misuse, and fear that HIVST could lead to further stigmatization. PEs and DiCEs were the preferred models for distributing HIVST kits. FSWs wanted kits made available free or at a nominal cost (100 Kenya Shillings or ∼USD 1). Linkage to confirmatory testing, the efficiency of distributing HIVST kits using peers and DiCEs, and the types and content of effective HIVST messaging require further research.
• Subjects:
  Female HIV Infections Humans Kenya Mass Screening Self-Testing Sex Workers
• Keywords:
  Female Sex Workers HIV/AIDS HIV Self-testing Implementation Science
• Source:
  AIDS Care. 34(6):717-724
• Pubmed ID:
  33657929
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC10962321
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  CC999999/ImCDC/Intramural CDC HHSUnited States/ ; U2G PS002052/PS/NCHHSTP CDC HHSUnited States/ ; PEPFAR/PEPFARUnited States/
• Place as Subject:
  Kenya
• Volume:
  34
• Issue:
  6
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:caac7e50cfe43879fd6b0deda7622c03dfba6d39fc2ca733400b92fe0090d8f9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/153541/cdc_153541_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 336.66 KB ]