Staff View: Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia

Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia

BackgroundAlthough research on HIV self-testing (HIVST) has rapidly increased, few studies have explored HIVST uptake in female sex workers (FSW), and none in Malaysia. Therefore, we endeavored to assess the willingness to use HIVST in this at-risk, vulnerable population. MethodsA cross-sectional su...

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Main Authors:	Kim, Rayne S. S., Wickersham, Jeffrey A. A., Maviglia, Francesca, Galka, Jonathan M. M., Azwa, Iskandar, Gautam, Kamal, Shrestha, Roman
Format:	Article
Published:	Frontiers Media 2023
Subjects:	RC Internal medicine
Online Access:	http://eprints.um.edu.my/38305/
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spelling	my.um.eprints.383052023-11-28T01:33:34Z http://eprints.um.edu.my/38305/ Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia Kim, Rayne S. S. Wickersham, Jeffrey A. A. Maviglia, Francesca Galka, Jonathan M. M. Azwa, Iskandar Gautam, Kamal Shrestha, Roman RC Internal medicine BackgroundAlthough research on HIV self-testing (HIVST) has rapidly increased, few studies have explored HIVST uptake in female sex workers (FSW), and none in Malaysia. Therefore, we endeavored to assess the willingness to use HIVST in this at-risk, vulnerable population. MethodsA cross-sectional survey study was conducted among 113 HIV-negative Malaysian FSW in 2017. Participants were recruited using advertisements on social media, flyers, and direct referrals from community-based organizations. Data were collected using self-administered surveys. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify correlates of willingness to use HIVST. ResultsNearly a third of participants (30.1%) reported they would be willing to use HIVST. Multivariable analyses adjusting for Malay ethnicity, stable housing, living in Kuala Lumpur (KL), years in sex work, age of first sex work, childhood sexual assault, history of HIV testing, and previously in prison indicated that living in KL adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 5.214, p = 0.0137] was associated with a greater willingness to use HIVST. In contrast, having stable housing (aOR = 0.100, p = 0.0064) was negatively associated with willingness to use HIVST. ConclusionsOur results indicate that HIVST may potentially enhance the uptake of HIV testing among FSWs living in an urban environment and experiencing unstable housing, but an overall willingness to use HIVST is low. These findings highlight the need for efforts to increase awareness of HIVST among FSWs and additional research on the effective implementation of HIVST for FSW. Frontiers Media 2023-04 Article PeerReviewed Kim, Rayne S. S. and Wickersham, Jeffrey A. A. and Maviglia, Francesca and Galka, Jonathan M. M. and Azwa, Iskandar and Gautam, Kamal and Shrestha, Roman (2023) Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia. Frontiers in Medicine, 10. ISSN 2296-858X, DOI https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2023.1022746 <https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2023.1022746>. 10.3389/fmed.2023.1022746
institution	Universiti Malaya
building	UM Library
collection	Institutional Repository
continent	Asia
country	Malaysia
content_provider	Universiti Malaya
content_source	UM Research Repository
url_provider	http://eprints.um.edu.my/
topic	RC Internal medicine
spellingShingle	RC Internal medicine Kim, Rayne S. S. Wickersham, Jeffrey A. A. Maviglia, Francesca Galka, Jonathan M. M. Azwa, Iskandar Gautam, Kamal Shrestha, Roman Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia
description	BackgroundAlthough research on HIV self-testing (HIVST) has rapidly increased, few studies have explored HIVST uptake in female sex workers (FSW), and none in Malaysia. Therefore, we endeavored to assess the willingness to use HIVST in this at-risk, vulnerable population. MethodsA cross-sectional survey study was conducted among 113 HIV-negative Malaysian FSW in 2017. Participants were recruited using advertisements on social media, flyers, and direct referrals from community-based organizations. Data were collected using self-administered surveys. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify correlates of willingness to use HIVST. ResultsNearly a third of participants (30.1%) reported they would be willing to use HIVST. Multivariable analyses adjusting for Malay ethnicity, stable housing, living in Kuala Lumpur (KL), years in sex work, age of first sex work, childhood sexual assault, history of HIV testing, and previously in prison indicated that living in KL adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 5.214, p = 0.0137] was associated with a greater willingness to use HIVST. In contrast, having stable housing (aOR = 0.100, p = 0.0064) was negatively associated with willingness to use HIVST. ConclusionsOur results indicate that HIVST may potentially enhance the uptake of HIV testing among FSWs living in an urban environment and experiencing unstable housing, but an overall willingness to use HIVST is low. These findings highlight the need for efforts to increase awareness of HIVST among FSWs and additional research on the effective implementation of HIVST for FSW.
format	Article
author	Kim, Rayne S. S. Wickersham, Jeffrey A. A. Maviglia, Francesca Galka, Jonathan M. M. Azwa, Iskandar Gautam, Kamal Shrestha, Roman
author_facet	Kim, Rayne S. S. Wickersham, Jeffrey A. A. Maviglia, Francesca Galka, Jonathan M. M. Azwa, Iskandar Gautam, Kamal Shrestha, Roman
author_sort	Kim, Rayne S. S.
title	Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia
title_short	Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia
title_full	Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia
title_fullStr	Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia
title_full_unstemmed	Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia
title_sort	drivers of hiv self-testing among female sex workers: findings from a multi-state study in malaysia
publisher	Frontiers Media
publishDate	2023
url	http://eprints.um.edu.my/38305/
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score	13.211869

Drivers of HIV self-testing among female sex workers: Findings from a multi-state study in Malaysia

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