An Assessment of Health Interventions Required to Prevent the Transmission of HIV Infection Among Men Having Sex with Men in Bujumbura, Burundi.

Data regarding HIV among men having sex with men (MSM) in Burundi are scarce. In a context where same-sex practices are illegal, national recommendations including MSM have been issued in 2012. However, no study has been conducted to evaluate MSM's health needs, which would be useful to adapt recommendations and implement evidence-based interventions. This study aimed at identifying health needs expressed by MSM. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Bujumbura in 2014, in collaboration with the National Association for HIV positive people and AIDS patients. Fifty-one MSM, recruited during HIV prevention activities, self-completed a questionnaire. A descriptive analysis was conducted. Participants had a median age of 23 years, over 60 % declared being a member of an LGBT organisation and 76 % lived their homosexuality secretly or discretely. Over the last month, 67 % declared having had sex with a man and 32 % with a woman. In the previous 6 months, 40 % declared having systematically used a condom during sexual intercourse. In terms of health needs, 22 % did not use the services offered by HIV providers. Participants expressed needs in terms of prevention (access to rapid HIV tests, in a confidential setting, with counselling) and care (listening centre, free treatment, confidentiality). Medical expertise and being a good listener were the predominant healthcare staff qualities desired by participants. Results suggest that Burundian MSM represent an at-risk population, with low access to HIV services, in need of a comprehensive approach for HIV prevention, with community-based activities (HIV testing, counselling, prevention tools), psychological and social support.

[Facilitating access to care for most-at-risk populations : the Bamako night sexual health clinic experience (Mali)]. / Faciliter l'accès aux soins des populations les plus exposées : l'expérience de la clinique nocturne de santé sexuelle de Bamako au Mali.

The estimated prevalence of HIV in Mali is 1.3 % of the general population. The epidemic is concentrated in certain groups, particularly men who have sex with men (MSM) and sex workers (SW). Access to care is limited for these populations, notably because of structural obstacles (e.g. marked social rejection ; health care services poorly adapted to the real needs of these people). Innovative strategies must be envisaged to ensure access to care services and retention in care for these populations. As part of a health promotion process, ARCAD-SIDA, a Malian NGO involved in the fight against AIDS since 1995, set up a night sexual health clinic in 2010 as part of a strategy to more adequately respond to the health needs of these populations. This clinic adapts health service timetables to match the lifestyles of the targeted populations, brings services in closer physical proximity to the places in which these populations live, proposes patient-tailored consultations, works to improve the patients' psychosocial skills, and promotes community-based peer mobilization. In an environment which is generally hostile to MSM and SW, ARCAD-SIDA also works in advocacy, targeting political decision-makers, defense forces and journalists. The NGO has also played a key role in ensuring that these populations are taken into account in the national strategy for the fight against HIV. Since opening in 2010, the clinic has helped reach a large number of MSM and SW and has improved retention in care. This innovative strategy has also enabled the NGO to improve its professional practices in terms of an individual-based approach to prevention. Interventions that are better adapted to the needs and environment of the populations for whom they are intented to have a positive effect on access to and use of healthcare services.