Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2013

DOI

10.7448/IAS.16.4.18741

Publication Title

Journal of the International AIDS Society

Volume

16

Issue

4, Supplement 3

Pages

18741 (1-7)

Abstract

Introduction

Men who have sex with men (MSM) in Kenya are at high risk for HIV and may experience prejudiced treatment in health settings due to stigma. An on-line computer-facilitated MSM sensitivity programme was conducted to educate healthcare workers (HCWs) about the health issues and needs of MSM patients.

Methods

Seventy-four HCWs from 49 ART-providing health facilities in the Kenyan Coast were recruited through purposive sampling to undergo a two-day MSM sensitivity training. We conducted eight focus group discussions (FGDs) with programme participants prior to and three months after completing the training programme. Discussions aimed to characterize HCWs’ challenges in serving MSM patients and impacts of programme participation on HCWs’ personal attitudes and professional capacities.

Results

Before participating in the training programme, HCWs described secondary stigma, lack of professional education about MSM, and personal and social prejudices as barriers to serving MSM clients. After completing the programme, HCWs expressed greater acknowledgement of MSM patients in their clinics, endorsed the need to treat MSM patients with high professional standards and demonstrated sophisticated awareness of the social and behavioural risks for HIV among MSM.

Conclusions

Findings provide support for this approach to improving health services for MSM patients. Further efforts are needed to broaden the reach of this training in other areas, address identified barriers to HCW participation and evaluate programme effects on patient and HCW outcomes using rigorous methodology.

Comments

© 2013 van der Elst EM et al; licensee International AIDS Society. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0) License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Original Publication Citation

van der Elst, E. M., Gichuru, E., Omar, A., Kanungi, J., Duby, Z., Midoun, M., Shangani, S., Graham, S. M., Smith, A. D., Sanders, E. J., & Operario, D. (2013). Experiences of Kenyan healthcare workers providing services to men who have sex with men: Qualitative findings from a sensitivity training programme. Journal of the International AIDS Society, 16(4), 18741. https://doi.org/10.7448/IAS.16.4.18741

ORCID

0000-0002-8095-233X (Shangani)

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