We have located links that may give you full text access.
JOURNAL ARTICLE
RESEARCH SUPPORT, NON-U.S. GOV'T
Determining barriers to creating an enabling environment in Cambodia: results from a baseline study with key populations and police.
INTRODUCTION: Cambodian law enforcement's limited acceptance of harm reduction has hindered HIV program effectiveness. With funding from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, FHI 360 supported the Ministry of Interior to implement the Police Community Partnership Initiative (PCPI) in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh. To guide this, FHI 360 conducted a baseline study examining police and key populations' attitudes and practices towards one another, including fear and occurrence of arrest.
METHODS: Between December 2012 and January 2013, a cross-sectional survey of 199 police post officers, 199 people who use drugs (PWUD) including people who inject drugs (PWID), 199 men who have sex with men (MSM), 200 transgender women (TGW) and 200 female entertainment workers (FEW) was conducted in five Phnom Penh districts. Eligible participants were ≥18 years, members of a key population from selected hotspots or police officers, deputy chiefs or chiefs.
RESULTS: Key populations' median age was 25 years (IQR: 22-30); 40% had completed only primary school. Police were male (99.5%), with median age 43 years (IQR: 30 to 47), and 45 and 25% high school and university completion rates, respectively. Key populations feared arrest for carrying needles and syringes (67%), condoms (23%) and 19% felt afraid to access health services. Close to 75% of police reported body searching and 58% arresting key populations in the past six months for using drugs (64%), selling or distributing drugs (36%) or being violent (13%). Self-reported arrests (23% PWUD, 6% MSM, 6% TGW, 12% FEW; p<0.05), being verbally threatened (45% PWUD, 21% MSM, 25% TGW, 27% FEW; p<0.001) and body searched (44% PWUD, 28% MSM, 23% TGW, 8% FEW; p<0.001) was significantly higher among PWUD than other key populations. The majority (94%) of police believed arrest was an appropriate solution to reduce HIV and drug use and reported selling sex (88%) and carrying needles and syringes (55%) as valid reasons for arrest.
CONCLUSIONS: Key populations' fear of accessing harm reduction and health services and police's negative attitudes and practices towards key populations present major barriers to HIV prevention efforts in Cambodia. To create an enabling environment and ensure police are allies in the Cambodian HIV response, interventions should tackle underlying negative attitudes among police towards key populations and vice versa.
METHODS: Between December 2012 and January 2013, a cross-sectional survey of 199 police post officers, 199 people who use drugs (PWUD) including people who inject drugs (PWID), 199 men who have sex with men (MSM), 200 transgender women (TGW) and 200 female entertainment workers (FEW) was conducted in five Phnom Penh districts. Eligible participants were ≥18 years, members of a key population from selected hotspots or police officers, deputy chiefs or chiefs.
RESULTS: Key populations' median age was 25 years (IQR: 22-30); 40% had completed only primary school. Police were male (99.5%), with median age 43 years (IQR: 30 to 47), and 45 and 25% high school and university completion rates, respectively. Key populations feared arrest for carrying needles and syringes (67%), condoms (23%) and 19% felt afraid to access health services. Close to 75% of police reported body searching and 58% arresting key populations in the past six months for using drugs (64%), selling or distributing drugs (36%) or being violent (13%). Self-reported arrests (23% PWUD, 6% MSM, 6% TGW, 12% FEW; p<0.05), being verbally threatened (45% PWUD, 21% MSM, 25% TGW, 27% FEW; p<0.001) and body searched (44% PWUD, 28% MSM, 23% TGW, 8% FEW; p<0.001) was significantly higher among PWUD than other key populations. The majority (94%) of police believed arrest was an appropriate solution to reduce HIV and drug use and reported selling sex (88%) and carrying needles and syringes (55%) as valid reasons for arrest.
CONCLUSIONS: Key populations' fear of accessing harm reduction and health services and police's negative attitudes and practices towards key populations present major barriers to HIV prevention efforts in Cambodia. To create an enabling environment and ensure police are allies in the Cambodian HIV response, interventions should tackle underlying negative attitudes among police towards key populations and vice versa.
Full text links
Related Resources
Trending Papers
Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: diagnosis, risk assessment, and treatment.Clinical Research in Cardiology : Official Journal of the German Cardiac Society 2024 April 12
Proximal versus distal diuretics in congestive heart failure.Nephrology, Dialysis, Transplantation 2024 Februrary 30
Efficacy and safety of pharmacotherapy in chronic insomnia: A review of clinical guidelines and case reports.Mental Health Clinician 2023 October
World Health Organization and International Consensus Classification of eosinophilic disorders: 2024 update on diagnosis, risk stratification, and management.American Journal of Hematology 2024 March 30
Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university
For the best experience, use the Read mobile app
All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2024 by WebMD LLC.
This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.
By using this service, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.
Your Privacy Choices
You can now claim free CME credits for this literature searchClaim now
Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university
For the best experience, use the Read mobile app