Abstract
Objectives
We assess the contribution of a rapid-HIV testing program run by Médicos del Mundo and oriented to vulnerable populations reluctant to attend conventional settings.
Methods
We compare the program outcomes with a network of 20 HIV/STI clinics (EPIVIH) and the Spanish National Surveillance System (SNHSS).
Results
33.3 % of the new diagnoses were women (8.6 % EPIVIH and 17.7 % SNHSS). Transsexuals were 6.9 % (1.9 % EPIVIH), female sex workers 23.6 % (2.0 % EPIVIH) and 19.4 % Sub-Saharan Africans (3.8 % EPIVIH and 7.8 % SNHSS). HIV prevalence in men was slightly higher than in the EPIVIH and almost twice among women.
Conclusions
This program is contributing substantially to the promotion of HIV diagnosis in female sex workers, sub-Saharan Africans and transsexuals, which are less present at clinical settings.
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Acknowledgments
Bona Otal, Marta (Aragón), Díaz Alarcón, Juan Antonio (Andalucía-Sevilla), Espinosa de los Monteros (Andalucía-Málaga), Morante García, Vladimir (Andalucía-Almería), Matesanz Mareu, Belen (Illes Balears-Palma), Hernández Alvarado, Fabiola (Islas Canarias-Gran Canaria), González-Palacios, Sergio (Islas Canarias-Lanzarote), Herrera Darias, Rita (Islas Canarias-Tenerife), Ruibal Santos, Purificación (País Vasco-Bilbao), Ruiz Fernández, Maria José (C. Valenciana-Valencia), Iborra Tomás, Manuel (C.Valenciana-Alicante). Data analysis and manuscript preparation were supported by Foundation for Research and Prevention of AIDS in Spain (FIPSE) grant 240961/10. The program has been fully funded by Médicos del Mundo (MdM).
Conflict of interest
The Spanish law has been followed thought the whole study.
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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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Fernández-Balbuena, S., Belza, M.J., Urdaneta, E. et al. Serving the underserved: an HIV testing program for populations reluctant to attend conventional settings. Int J Public Health 60, 121–126 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-014-0606-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-014-0606-2