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Abstract
Syringe sharing among injecting drug users in Vietnam: patterns and contexts
N T Lam
Amsterdam School for Social Science Research, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Background: injecting drug use is the predominant mode of HIV transmission in Vietnam, with a high rate of syringe sharing (sharing). Harm reduction programs are piloted, but show little impact. Little attention is paid to the proximal contexts of sharing episodes. This paper describes ten patterns of sharing and their situational contexts among injecting drug users (IDUs).
Methods: data are drawn on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Hanoi and Quang Ninh, Vietnam, 2002. 56 in-depth interviews, 04 focus group discussions and extensive observations were conducted. Fieldnotes and various slang terms used by IDUs were carefully collected to supplement data analysis.
Results:"front loading"and "sharing a load" are two main injecting techniques used by IDUs. Ten sharing patterns in context are found, including: 1. sharing between primary sex partners and spouses; 2. sharing between close/best friends; 3. sharing between two seronegative injectors after detoxification; 4. sharing between two seropositive injectors; 5. sharing occurs accidentally between two positive- negative injecting friends; 6. sharing occurs accidentally within positive- negative injecting couples; 7. sharing occurs intentionally within positive-negative couples or friends; 8. sharing in detoxification centers and prisons; 9. sharing in shooting galleries; 10. sharing by injecting drug remnants from unknown syringes. These sharing episodes are embedded in particular contexts, structuring around eight major parameters: craving, syringe scarcity, trust, lack of money, carelessness, lack of AIDS knowledge, revenge motivation, and syringe lending/borrowing.
Conclusions: sharing occurs very frequently among IDUs and in specific contexts. Harm reduction should urgently be integrated with safer injecting training (some pragmatic skills and information for IDUs are provided). Further research is needed to evaluate the relative risks of these sharing behaviours for relevant strategies.
The XV International AIDS Conference
Abstract no.
WePeD6259
Suggested Citation
" N T Lam ,
Syringe sharing among injecting drug users in Vietnam: patterns and contexts.
Poster Exhibition:
The XV International AIDS Conference:
Abstract no.
WePeD6259"
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