Towards safe abortion access: an exploratory study of medical abortion in Cambodia.

In 2010, following its approval by the Ministry of Health, the medical abortion combination pack Medabon (containing mifepristone and misoprostol) was made available at pharmacies and in a restricted number of health facilities in Cambodia. The qualitative study presented in this paper was conducted in 2012 as a follow-up to longer-term ethnographical research related to reproductive health and fertility regulation between 2008 and 2012. Observations were carried out at several clinic and pharmacy sites and in-depth interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 20 women who attended two MSI Cambodia centres and 10 women identified through social networks; six men (women's male partners); eight health care providers at the two MSI centres and four pill sellers at private or informal pharmacies (who also provided health care services in private clinics). Although the level of training among the drug sellers and providers varied, their knowledge about medical abortion regimens, correct usage and common side effects was good. Overall, women were satisfied with the services provided. Medical abortion was not always a women-only process in this study as some male partners were also involved in the care process. The study illustrates positive steps forward being taken in making abortion safe and preventing and reducing unsafe abortion practices in Cambodia.

Sex work and HIV in Cambodia: trajectories of risk and disease in two cohorts of high-risk young women in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

OBJECTIVES: HIV prevalence among Cambodian female sex workers (FSW) is among the highest in Southeast Asia. We describe HIV prevalence and associated risk exposures in FSW sampled serially in Phnom Penh, Cambodia (Young Women's Health Study (YWHS)), before and after the implementation of a new law designed to combat human trafficking and sexual exploitation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from two prospective cohorts. SETTING: Community-based study in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. PARTICIPANTS: Women aged 15-29 years, reporting ≥2 sexual partners in the last month and/or engaged in transactional sex in the last 3 months, were enrolled in the studies in 2007 (N=161; YWHS-1), and 2009 (N=220; YWHS-2) following information sessions where 285 and 345 women attended. PRIMARY OUTCOMES: HIV prevalence, sexual risk behaviour, amphetamine-type stimulant (ATS) and alcohol use, and work-related factors were compared in the two groups, enrolled before and after implementation of the new law. RESULTS: Participants in the two cohorts were similar in age (median 25 years), but YWHS-2 women reported fewer sex partners, more alcohol use and less ATS use. A higher proportion of YWHS-2 compared with YWHS-1 women worked in entertainment-based venues (68% vs 31%, respectively). HIV prevalence was significantly lower in the more recently sampled women: 9.2% (95% CI 4.5% to 13.8%) vs 23% (95% CI 16.5% to 29.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Sex work context and risk have shifted among young FSW in Phnom Penh, following implementation of anti-prostitution and anti-trafficking laws. While both cohorts were recruited using the same eligibility criteria, more recently sampled women had lower prevalence of sexual risk and HIV infection. Women engaging more directly in transactional sex have become harder to sample and access. Future prevention research and programmes need to consider how new policies and demographic changes in FSW impact HIV transmission.

Selling sex in unsafe spaces: sex work risk environments in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

BACKGROUND: The risk environment framework provides a valuable but under-utilised heuristic for understanding environmental vulnerability to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections among female sex workers. Brothels have been shown to be safer than street-based sex work, with higher rates of consistent condom use and lower HIV prevalence. While entertainment venues are also assumed to be safer than street-based sex work, few studies have examined environmental influences on vulnerability to HIV in this context. METHODS: As part of the Young Women's Health Study, a prospective observational study of young women (15-29 years) engaged in sex work in Phnom Penh, we conducted in-depth interviews (n = 33) to explore vulnerability to HIV/STI and related harms. Interviews were conducted in Khmer by trained interviewers, transcribed and translated into English and analysed for thematic content. RESULTS: The intensification of anti-prostitution and anti-trafficking efforts in Cambodia has increased the number of women working in entertainment venues and on the street. Our results confirm that street-based sex work places women at risk of HIV/STI infection and identify significant environmental risks related to entertainment-based sex work, including limited access to condoms and alcohol-related intoxication. Our data also indicate that exposure to violence and interactions with the police are mediated by the settings in which sex is sold. In particular, transacting sex in environments such as guest houses where there is little or no oversight in the form of peer or managerial support or protection, may increase vulnerability to HIV/STI. CONCLUSIONS: Entertainment venues may also provide a high risk environment for sex work. Our results indicate that strategies designed to address HIV prevention among brothel-based FSWs in Cambodia have not translated well to street and entertainment-based sex work venues in which increasing numbers of women are working. There is an urgent need for targeted interventions, supported by legal and policy reforms, designed to reduce the environmental risks of sex work in these settings. Future research should seek to investigate sex work venues as risk environments, explore the role of different business models in mediating these environments, and identify and quantify exposure to risk in different occupational settings.