Ethnicity and risk factors in needle sharing among intravenous drug users in Sichuan Province, China

• Published in: AIDS care 2007-01, Vol.19 (1), p.1-8
• Main Authors: Choi, Susanne Y. P., Cheung, Y. W., Jiang, Z. Q.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome; Addictive behaviors; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; AIDS; Biological and medical sciences; China; China - ethnology; Comparative studies; Cultural differences; Cultural discrimination; Drug abuse; Drug addiction; Drug users; Economic Factors; Empowerment; Ethnic Groups; Ethnicity; Female; Han; Health; Health education; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; HIV; HIV Infections - ethnology; Human immunodeficiency virus; Human viral diseases; Humans; Infectious diseases; Intravenous drug addiction; Male; Medical sciences; Minority Groups; Needle exchange programs; Needle exchange schemes; Needle Sharing; Peoples Republic of China; Prejudice; Prevention; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Risk Factors; Self Efficacy; Sex education; Sexually transmitted diseases; Social Support; Socioeconomic Factors; Substance abuse; Substance Abuse, Intravenous - ethnology; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the lymphoid tissue and the blood. Aids
• ISSN: 0954-0121; 1360-0451
• DOI: 10.1080/09540120600900496

Combining survey and ethnographic data, this research examined differences in the risk factors associated with needle sharing amongst intravenous drug users (IDUs) in the Sichuan Province of China. A comparison was made between the province's majority Han population and its Yi minority. We developed a theoretical framework consisting of risk factors at the individual level (including risk factors such as lack of AIDS knowledge, low self-efficacy, and economic pressure), interpersonal level (having an IDU primary partner and lack of family support), and community level (social discrimination). The findings suggested that the Yi minority group was more socially disadvantaged and had a higher risk of contracting HIV than the Han group. Furthermore, the factors that put them at risk were different to those which affected the Han group. OLS regression results showed that, for Han IDUs, needle sharing was positively associated with having an IDU primary partner and with economic pressure. On the other hand, for the minority group, needle sharing was significantly associated with being male, AIDS knowledge, the lack of family support, and social discrimination. These findings highlight the need for HIV prevention work to target marginalized populations in China, such as ethnic minorities, and to tailor appropriate prevention strategies to meet the specific needs of different groups.