Determinants for HIV testing and counselling in Nairobi urban informal settlements

BMC Public Health

Research Article

Samuel Oti¹  James K Kimani¹  Alex Ezeh¹  George Mgomella¹  Abdhalah K Ziraba²  Mwau Matilu³  Nyovani J Madise⁴ 

[1] African Population and Health Research Center, P. O. Box 10787, Kirawa Road, off Peponi Road, 00100, Nairobi, Kenya;African Population and Health Research Center, P. O. Box 10787, Kirawa Road, off Peponi Road, 00100, Nairobi, Kenya;Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, Department of Population Studies, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Room LG21, Keppel Street, WC1E 7HT, London, UK;Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), P. O. Box 54840, 00200, Nairobi, Kenya;University of Southampton, School of Social Sciences, SO17 1BJ, Southampton, UK;

关键词: Informal Settlement;    Married Individual;    PITC;    Kenya Medical Research Institute;    Multiple Sexual Partnership;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2458-11-663

 received in 2011-01-29, accepted in 2011-08-23,  发布年份 2011

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundCounselling and testing is important in HIV prevention and care. Majority of people in sub-Saharan Africa do not know their HIV status and are therefore unable to take steps to prevent infection or take up life prolonging anti-retroviral drugs in time if infected. This study aimed at exploring determinants of HIV testing and counselling in two Nairobi informal settlements.MethodsData are derived from a cross-sectional survey nested in an ongoing demographic surveillance system. A total of 3,162 individuals responded to the interview and out of these, 82% provided a blood sample which was tested using rapid test kits. The outcome of interest in this paper was HIV testing status in the past categorised as "never tested"; "client-initiated testing and counselling (CITC)" and provider-initiated testing and counselling (PITC). Multinomial logistic regression was used to identify determinants of HIV testing.ResultsApproximately 31% of all respondents had ever been tested for HIV through CITC, 22% through PITC and 42% had never been tested but indicated willingness to test. Overall, 62% of females and 38% of males had ever been tested for HIV. Males were less likely to have had CITC (OR = 0.47; p value < 0.001) and also less likely to have had PITC (OR = 0.16; p value < 0.001) compared to females. Individuals aged 20-24 years were more likely to have had either CITC or PITC compared to the other age groups. The divorced/separated/widowed were more likely (OR = 1.65; p value < 0.01) to have had CITC than their married counterparts, while the never married were less likely to have had either CITC or PITC. HIV positive individuals (OR = 1.60; p value < 0.01) and those who refused testing in the survey (OR = 1.39; p value < 0.05) were more likely to have had CITC compared to their HIV negative counterparts.ConclusionAlthough the proportion of individuals ever tested in the informal settlements is similar to the national average, it remains low compared to that of Nairobi province especially among men. Key determinants of HIV testing and counselling include; gender, age, education level, HIV status and marital status. These factors need to be considered in efforts aimed at increasing participation in HIV testing.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Ziraba et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2011