At the 20th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2014) in Melbourne, Australia, staff from FHI 360’s India office will present a poster on a study that shows improved HIV testing among clients of female sex workers. The study contributes to evidence about what works to strengthen HIV prevention.
Why focus research on the clients of female sex workers?
Recent studies from India suggest that the purchase of sex from female sex workers is most predominant in higher HIV-prevalence states, such as Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. In India, there is a growing recognition of the importance of considering clients when looking to stop HIV transmission, and a number of prevention efforts under the national program have targeted these clients, most of whom are men.
Conducting surveys among clients of sex workers is challenging, because clients do not like to be identified. There is also little evidence that establishes clients’ risk of contracting HIV in India. To bridge this gap and to provide invaluable information on HIV trends and risk behavior, FHI 360 designed and managed the largest integrated biological and behavioral assessment (IBBA) for most-at-risk populations in India.
Collecting evidence to inform HIV programming
Conducted in 2006 and 2009, this cross-sectional survey interviewed approximately 10,000 clients of sex workers as part of Avahan (the India AIDS initiative). This program, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, gathered evidence to inform future HIV prevention programs in India. The IBBA survey was implemented by the institutes of the Indian Council of Medical Research, and technical support was provided by FHI 360.
Continue reading