Injecting drug use is a dangerous way of using drugs, not only related to high risk of HIV/hepatitis transmission, but also to vein damages. Therefore Odyseus created and realized unique educational campaign named PIKADU. The campaign is based on princi- ples of social marketing, aiming to influence everyone attending the needle/syringe exchange program, even drug users who do not want to talk with outreach workers. Campaign was realized in largest Slovak cities and was extended to open-air summer festivals in addition, but it has impact also outside of the cities. The educational campaign had nine „main messages“ (concerning reduction of risks related to injecting drug use), which were widely distributed for 9 months. Every month had one main message. The message was distributed through different carriers: cards (which could be collected to win T-shirt at the end of the campaign), posters, sheets (to secure clean surface during drug preparation), matches, consultations and magazine. The main messages were written in rhymes to ease remembering. During nine months of PIKADU campaign it was accomplished to directly reach 1439 injecting drug users through 5545 contacts with them. One of the points of the campaign was to encourage the participants to spread the main messages inside the community. We assume that by means of secondary spreading of information, the campaign could reach two or three times more people using drugs. The campaign was very successful and resulted to improvement of outreach workers‘ and drug users‘ knowledge (proved by survey). Peter Lazovy is coordinator of needle/ syringe exchange program and vicechairman of Civic association Odyseus, Slovakia. He has master degree of Social work in Commenius University and has finished Drug counselling course, organized by Civic association SANANIM. In Odyseus he works for 4 years, with active participation in outreach work with peple using drugs and sexworkers. In past he worked as a Social counsellor (social work with people in material and social distress).
Introduction: Aim of the study was to determine risk behaviour and HIV prevalence among commercial sex workers (CSWs) and intravenous drug users (IDUs) in streets of Bratislava and B. Bystrica, SR. Methods: HIV antibodies were tested from saliva using ELISA test. Anonymous questionnaire was completed. Results: 121 persons (61 men and 60 women) were involved in the sociological study. Mean age of the participants was 21.9 years. 185.1% of subjects were from Bratislava. 108 participants were tested for the presence of HIV-antibodies, one was confirmed HIV-positive (0.82%). In the past 47.9% of participants and 22.3% of their partners were tested for the presence of HIV-antibodies. 10.8% of subjects proclaimed that they suffered from other sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the past. HIV testing of participants significantly correlated with the testing for other STI (p<0.002) as well as with HBV/HCV (p<0.001). 58 participants were using tattooing (47.9%). 46.3% of all participants never used condoms with partners. 31.4% of respondents proclaimed disruption of condom during sexual intercourse. Significant correlation was found between testing of participants for other STI and usage of condoms with their partners (p<0.013). Women used condoms more often by sexual contacts with partners than men used condoms (p<0.094). They were also significantly more tested for other STI in the past (p<0.021) and they suffered from other STI more often than men (p<0.033). 26.5% of person - only women - were involved in commercial sex work. 93.5% of them were taking drugs as well, 21.8% suffered for other STI in the past. They were working in sex business on average for 26 months. The average number of their clients per week was 12.3. CSWs used condoms more often with clients than with partners. 98.2% of all participants were taking drugs, 93% of them intravenously. 24.6% of IDUs always used new or their own needles and syringes, while 69.4% shared equipments with the other users. IDUs drug users used condoms significantly less often with their partners than did CSWs (p<0.006). CSWs were significantly more often tested for other STI (p<0.001) and they also more often suffered for other STI than IDUs (p<0.045). Conclusion: More effort should be done to decrease risk behaviour revealed in the groups of CSWs and drug users.
- MeSH
- chování snižující riziko MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- HIV infekce MeSH
- hodnocení rizik MeSH
- intravenózní abúzus drog patologie prevence a kontrola MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- prostituce MeSH
- Check Tag
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Slovenská republika MeSH
