ABSTRACT
Background & objectives: The overall adult prevalence of HIV in India was estimated to be 0.22 per cent in 2019. The HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM), a high-risk group for HIV, was estimated to be 4.3 per cent, which is 16 times higher than the national average. In Delhi, the estimated prevalence among MSM was 1.8 per cent. Despite free HIV testing services being made available by the National AIDS Control Programme for more than two decades, many MSM were not aware about their HIV status. Therefore, newer testing strategies are needed. Oral HIV self-testing (HIVST) has proved to be one such promising innovation. At present, there are no programme guidelines on HIVST and oral HIVST kit is not available in India. The aim of this study was to understand the perceived advantages and disadvantages of introduction of oral HIVST strategy among MSM. Methods: MSM who were registered with the selected non-governmental organizations working as targeted intervention sites in Delhi, India, were recruited for focus group discussions (FGDs) between January and May 2021. For the purpose of this study, MSM were defined as males who had anal/oral sex with male/hijra partner in the past one month. A total of six FGDs were conducted using a prepared FGD guide. The FGD guide included questions on problems faced during conventional HIV testing, participants’ awareness, acceptability and perceptions of oral HIVST. The data were manually coded and entered in NVivo release 1.5 and themes were identified. Results: A total of 67 respondents participated in the FGDs. A total of 28.4 per cent MSM were beggars at traffic lights, 12 per cent were sex workers and 11.9 per cent were bar/event dancers. Nearly half (50.7%) of the participants had undergone HIV testing less than twice in the preceding one year. None of the MSM were aware about oral HIVST. Perceived advantages of oral HIVST were ease of use, confidentiality and the non-invasive pain-free procedure. Perceived concerns included lack of post-test counselling, linkage to care, poor mental health outcomes and forced testing. Interpretation & conclusions: Most MSM had positive perceptions about oral HIVST. Therefore, it is likely that the introduction of oral HIVST may result in higher uptake of HIV testing among MSM
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND The involvement of medical students in strategies to control Covid-19 might be considered to cope with the shortage of healthcare workers. We assessed the knowledge about Covid-19, willingness to volunteer, potential areas of involvement and reasons for hesitation among medical students towards volunteering. METHODS We did this cross-sectional study among undergraduate students at a tertiary care teaching hospital in New Delhi. We used a web-based questionnaire to elicit demographic information, knowledge of Covid-19, willingness to volunteer and reasons deterring them from working during the Covid-19 pandemic, and self-declared knowledge in six domains. RESULTS A total of 292 students participated in the study with a mean (SD) age of 19.9 (3.1) years. The mean (SD) knowledge score of Covid-19 was 6.9 (1.1) (maximum score 10). Knowledge score was significantly different among preclinical (6.5), paraclinical (7.18) and clinical groups (7.03). Almost three-fourth (75.3%) participants were willing to volunteer in the Covid-19 pandemic, though 67.8% had not received any training in emergency medicine or public health crisis management. Willingness to work was maximum in areas of social work and indirect patient care (62.3% each). Lack of personal protective equipment was cited as a highly deterring factor for volunteering (62.7%) followed by fear of transmitting the infection to family members (45.9%), fear of causing harm to the patient (34.2%) and the absence of available treatment (22.2%). CONCLUSIONS A majority of the students were willing to volunteer even though they had not received adequate training. Students may serve as an auxiliary force during the pandemic, especially in non-clinical settings.
ABSTRACT
"Community Medicine discipline and role of Department have been debated for long. IAPSM Declaration 2018 attempts to address these issues for developing a better understanding. The strength of declaration lies in the change in focus to basic clinical services, traditional 'Community Medicine' functions, effective community based training and liaison with district health care delivery systems. The definition, overlapping of key functions with 'Public Health' and a focus on curative services, however, need further attention. The Departments have to work closely with Clinical Departments in Medical Institutions, District Health agencies at all levels as well as Communities to achieve these objectives. "
ABSTRACT
Background: Male migrant workers display high risk sexual behavior and have been shown to have higher prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which make them more vulnerable to HIV infection. We aimed to estimate the prevalence of self-reported STIs and delineate their determinants among male migrant factory workers in Faridabad, Haryana. Materials and Methods: Male workers in two selected factories, who were aged ≥18 years, were born outside Haryana (destination), and who had migrated to Haryana after the age of 15 years were eligible. Sociodemographic information, HIV/AIDS knowledge and behavior, and self-reported STI symptoms in the last 1 year were ascertained by face-to-face interview. Determinants of STIs were identifi ed by regression analysis. Results: Totally 755 eligible workers participated. Mean ± SD age was 31.4 ± 8.2 years and migration duration was 9.5 ± 6.7 years. At least one STI symptom was reported by 41.7% of the participants (burning micturition- 35%, inguinal bubos-5.2%, genital ulcers- 2.6%, urethral pus discharge- 1.3%). Factors associated with STIs were higher age at migration, lower HIV/AIDS knowledge, paid sex in the last year, non-use of condoms during the last non-spousal sex, and unfavorable intention to use condom. Conclusion: Prevalence of self-reported STIs among these migrant men was high. Targeted Interventions among migrant workers need to be strengthened for control and prevention of STIs.