The Relationship Between Social, Policy and Physical Venue Features and Social Cohesion on Condom Use for Pregnancy Prevention Among Sex Workers : A Safer Indoor Work Environment Scale

UBC Faculty Research and Publications

The Relationship Between Social, Policy and Physical Venue Features and Social Cohesion on Condom Use for Pregnancy Prevention Among Sex Workers : A Safer Indoor Work Environment Scale Duff, Putu; Shoveller, Jean; Dobrer, Sabina; Ogilvie, Gina; Montaner, Julio; Chettiar, Jill; Shannon, K.

Abstract

Background This study aims to: report on a newly developed ‘Safer Indoor Work Environmental Scale’ that characterizes the social, policy and physical features of indoor venues and social cohesion; and using this scale, longitudinally evaluate the association between these features on sex workers’ (SWs’) condom use for pregnancy prevention. Methods Drawing on a prospective open cohort of female SWs working in indoor venues, a newly-developed ‘Safer Indoor Work Environment Scale’ was used to build six multivariable models with generalized estimating equations (GEE), to determine the independent effects of social, policy and venue-based features and social cohesion on condom use. Results Of 588 indoor SWs, 63.6% used condoms for pregnancy prevention in the last month. In multivariable GEE analysis, the following venue-based features were significantly correlated with barrier contraceptive use for pregnancy prevention: managerial practices and venue safety policies (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR)=1.09; 95% Confidence Interval (95%CI) 1.01–1.17) access to sexual and reproductive health services/supplies (AOR=1.10; 95%CI 1.00–1.20) access to drug harm reduction (AOR=1.13; 95%CI 1.01–1.28), and social cohesion among workers (AOR=1.05; 95%CI 1.03–1.07). Access to security features was marginally associated with condom use (AOR=1.13; 95%CI 0.99–1.29). Conclusion The findings of the current study highlight how work environment and social cohesion among SWs are related to improved condom use. Given global calls for the decriminalization of sex work, and potential legislative reforms in Canada, this study points to the critical need for new institutional arrangements (e.g., legal and regulatory frameworks; labour standards) to support safer sex workplaces. Keywords: Sex work, structural intervention, work environment, condom, social cohesion

Item Metadata

Title	The Relationship Between Social, Policy and Physical Venue Features and Social Cohesion on Condom Use for Pregnancy Prevention Among Sex Workers : A Safer Indoor Work Environment Scale
Creator	Duff, Putu; Shoveller, Jean; Dobrer, Sabina; Ogilvie, Gina; Montaner, Julio; Chettiar, Jill; Shannon, K.
Contributor	BC Centre for Disease Control; British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. Gender and Sexual Health Initiative
Date Issued	2015-07
Description	Background This study aims to: report on a newly developed ‘Safer Indoor Work Environmental Scale’ that characterizes the social, policy and physical features of indoor venues and social cohesion; and using this scale, longitudinally evaluate the association between these features on sex workers’ (SWs’) condom use for pregnancy prevention. Methods Drawing on a prospective open cohort of female SWs working in indoor venues, a newly-developed ‘Safer Indoor Work Environment Scale’ was used to build six multivariable models with generalized estimating equations (GEE), to determine the independent effects of social, policy and venue-based features and social cohesion on condom use. Results Of 588 indoor SWs, 63.6% used condoms for pregnancy prevention in the last month. In multivariable GEE analysis, the following venue-based features were significantly correlated with barrier contraceptive use for pregnancy prevention: managerial practices and venue safety policies (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR)=1.09; 95% Confidence Interval (95%CI) 1.01–1.17) access to sexual and reproductive health services/supplies (AOR=1.10; 95%CI 1.00–1.20) access to drug harm reduction (AOR=1.13; 95%CI 1.01–1.28), and social cohesion among workers (AOR=1.05; 95%CI 1.03–1.07). Access to security features was marginally associated with condom use (AOR=1.13; 95%CI 0.99–1.29). Conclusion The findings of the current study highlight how work environment and social cohesion among SWs are related to improved condom use. Given global calls for the decriminalization of sex work, and potential legislative reforms in Canada, this study points to the critical need for new institutional arrangements (e.g., legal and regulatory frameworks; labour standards) to support safer sex workplaces. Keywords: Sex work, structural intervention, work environment, condom, social cohesion
Subject	Sex work; structural intervention; work environment; condom; social cohesion
Geographic Location	Downtown-Eastside (Vancouver, B.C.)
Genre	Article
Type	Text
Language	eng
Date Available	2018-05-08
Provider	Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights	Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
DOI	10.14288/1.0366221
URI	http://hdl.handle.net/2429/65793
Affiliation	Medicine, Faculty of; Other UBC; Medicine, Department of; Population and Public Health (SPPH), School of
Publisher DOI	doi:10.1136/jech-2014-204427
Peer Review Status	Reviewed
Scholarly Level	Researcher; Faculty
Rights URI	http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Aggregated Source Repository	DSpace

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