Deportation History among HIV-Positive Latinos in Two US-Mexico Border Communities

Health-related vulnerabilities associated with deportation are understudied. We conducted a cross-sectional study to identify factors associated with history of deportation from the US to Mexico among HIV-positive Latinos. 

From 2009 to 2010, we recruited a convenience sample from HIV clinics in San Diego, US and Tijuana, Mexico. Of 283 participants, 25% reported a prior deportation. Factors independently associated with increased odds of deportation history were being male, having ≤high-school education, ever using cocaine, and reporting personalized HIV-stigma: "some have told me HIV is what I deserve for how I lived". Lower self-reported antiretroviral medication adherence and perceiving HIV-stigma: "most people believe a person who has HIV is dirty" were associated with decreased odds of deportation history. 

Deportation is associated with specific socioeconomic indicators that are known to impact the health of individuals living with HIV.

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By: Muñoz FA1, Servin AE, Garfein RS, Ojeda VD, Rangel G, Zúñiga ML.

• 1Division of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.  

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Perceived Risk of HIV Infection among Deported Male Injection Drug Users in Tijuana, Mexico

Deported injection drug users (IDUs) in Mexico may be vulnerable to HIV infection following expulsion from the U.S. We examined factors associated with HIV risk perception among a sample of deportees in Tijuana. From January to April 2010, 313 male IDUs who reported ever being deported from the U.S. completed a questionnaire. 

Overall, 35% of deportees perceived HIV risk. In multivariate logistic regression analyses, factors independently associated with HIV risk perception included: ever having a steady female partner in Tijuana post-deportation and years spent in a U.S. prison. Conversely, years of drug injection use, ever witnessing family members use drugs prior to first migration trip, years of residence in the United States and being a Tijuana-native were negatively associated HIV risk perception. 

U.S.-Mexico border cities that receive deported migrants should target HIV prevention interventions to specific subgroups, including drug-using male deportees. Interventions should consider migrant's time in the U.S., the role of their social networks, and reducing missed opportunities for HIV testing/education.

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By: Miguel Pinedo,a José Luis Burgos,a Angela M. Robertson,b,c Alicia Vera,a,d Remedios Lozada,e and Victoria D. Ojedaa,*

^bDepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA

^cThe Fenway Institute, Fenway Health, Boston, USA

^dUniversidad Autonoma de Baja California, Tijuana, Mexico

^e

aDivision of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, USA
bDepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA
cThe Fenway Institute, Fenway Health, Boston, USA
dUniversidad Autonoma de Baja California, Tijuana, Mexico

aDivision of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, USA

"Right Here is the Gateway": Mobility, Sex Work Entry & HIV Risk Along the Mexico-U.S. Border

Women comprise an increasing proportion of migrants. Many voluntarily migrate for sex work or practice survival sex, while others may be trafficked for sexual exploitation. To investigate how the context of mobility shapes sex work entry and HIV risk, we conducted in-depth interviews with formerly trafficked women currently engaged in sex work (n=31) in Tijuana, Mexico and their service providers (n=7) in Tijuana and San Diego, USA from 2010–2011. 

Women’s experiences of coerced and deceptive migration, deportation as forced migration, voluntary mobility, and migration to a risk environment illustrate that circumstances driving and resulting from migration shape vulnerability to sex trafficking, voluntary sex work entry, and HIV risk. 

Findings suggest an urgent need for public health and immigration policies that provide integrated support for deported and/or recently arrived female migrants. Policies to prevent sex trafficking and assist trafficked females must also consider the varying levels of personal agency involved in migration and sex work entry.

Read more at: http://ht.ly/S77Kz 

By: SM Goldenberg,* JS Silverman,* D Engstrom,*** I Bojorquez-Chapela,** and SA Strathdee*

^**Department of Population Studies, El Colegio de la Frontera Norte, Tijuana, Baja California, México

^***

^**Department of Population Studies, El Colegio de la Frontera Norte, Tijuana, Baja California, México

^***

*Division of Global Public Health, University of California, La Jolla, CA, USA
**Department of Population Studies, El Colegio de la Frontera Norte, Tijuana, Baja California, México
***School of Social Work, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA

*Division of Global Public Health, University of California, La Jolla, CA, USA

*Division of Global Public Health, University of California, La Jolla, CA, USA

High Dead-Space Syringe Use among People Who Inject Drugs in Tijuana, Mexico

High dead-space syringes (HDSS) are believed to confer an elevated risk of acquiring HIV and other blood-borne infections.

Of 557 IDU, 40% had ever used HDSS, mostly because no other syringe type was available (72%), or because they were easier to get (20%). Controlling for sex and age at first injection, use of HDSS was associated with cocaine as the first drug injected, having been stopped or arrested by police, being deported from the US, and believing it is illegal to carry syringes.

Use of HDSS is surprisingly common among IDU in Tijuana. Efforts are needed to expand coverage of low-dead space syringes through existing syringe exchange programs. Education is required to increase awareness of the harms associated with HDSS, and to inform IDU that syringe possession is legal across Mexico.

Via: http://ht.ly/S6MbR

By: Rafful C1, Zule W, González-Zúñiga PE, Werb D, Medina-Mora ME, Magis-Rodriguez C, Strathdee SA.

1University of California , San Diego, La Jolla, CA