Condom Use Determinants and Practices among People Living with HIV in Kisii County, Kenya

The male condom remains the single, most efficient and available technology to reduce sexual transmission of HIV as well as sexually transmitted infections. 

This study sought to establish condom use determinants and practices among people living with HIV (PLHIVs) in Kisii County, Kenya. We interviewed 340 PLHIVs and 6 health workers. Although most PLHIVs had correct knowledge and approved condoms as effective for HIV prevention, consistent use and condom use at last sex were notably low especially among PLHIVs aged 18 - 24, those who depended on remittances from kin as main source of income, as well as during sex with secondary and casual partners. 

This study notes that knowledge on various benefits of using condoms is associated with enhanced condom use practices. Non-disclosure of HIV status to secondary and casual partners remains a key barrier to condom use among PLHIVs 

Our observations highlight the need to further promote condom use among specific PLHIVs socio-demographic groups who continue to exhibit low condom use rates.

...Overall, this study found that most participants (77%) used a condom the last time they had sex. Condom use at last sex is a widely used indicator in sexual behavior research. This result was much higher than the 10% observed in Kenya and Malawi five years ago among PLHIVs, probably due to increased investment in couple risk reduction among PLHIVs in recent years [29]. Although levels of condom use have increased significantly in high HIV burden countries over the past few years, it should be noted that this varies largely among various demographic groups, with young women recording low use levels [30]. A recent study in Kenya noted that low condom use could be attributed to demand side factors, highlighting the importance of building demand for condoms in the context of HIV prevention [15]. Demand-side barriers for condoms as a HIV preventive strategy are many. Much as the traditional barriers to condom use still exist, there are emerging barriers such as perceptions due to the knowledge that transmission risks lower with various biomedical interventions – voluntary medical male circumcision, post-exposure prophylaxis and antiretroviral therapy. Similarly, risk perceptions for the HIV infection are continuously modified in the era of effective therapy, as people vary their perceptions of potential consequences of an infection. These potential risk compensation effects are being closely scrutinized, but the dynamics are complex to track [30]. There is thus need to clearly communicate to HIV positive clients scientific facts not only on condom use, but also on other prevention methodologies...

Full article at:   http://goo.gl/LdkGTm

By:   Wamalwa Emmanuel,*,1 Neyole Edward,2 Poipoi Moses,3 Ringera William,4 Otomu Geoffrey,5 Bitok Monicah,6 andMbaluka Rosemary1

¹Health Department, CARE International, Nairobi, Kenya

²Department of Disaster Preparedness and Engineering Management, Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Kakamega, Kenya

³Department of Educational Psychology, Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Kakamega, Kenya

⁴Health Department, CARE International, Kisii Kenya

⁵County Health Directorate, Kisii County Government, Kisii Kenya

⁶Ministry of Health, The National Government, Nairobi, Kenya

^*Address correspondence to this author at the Health Department, CARE International, P.O Box 27578, (00100) Nairobi, Kenya; Tel: (+254) 721291260; E-mail: ek.ro.erac@awlamaw, Email: moc.oohay@awlamawleunamme

  

More at:  https://twitter.com/hiv_insight

And: http://twitter.com/Prison_Health