The primary area of research will be the risk factors which place women at risk of HIV. Women are the fastest growing population developing HIV infection (CDC, 1994). There are a complex array of factors which place certain women at a greater risk of HIV. Some of these risk factors include substance abuse patterns, sexual and physical violence, unsafe sexual practices with high risk partners, multiple sex partners, and broader issues of access to health care and economic disparity As a result of the constellation of these risk factors, inner city African American women are at a disproportionate risk for HIV infection. African American women are approximately 13 times more likely than white women to contract AIDS (Mays, 1989). Sexual practices and substance use behaviors are the two most widely recognized risk factors for HIV. In 1994, 45% of women with reported cases of AIDS in the United States were current or former intravenous drug users, and 18% were infected as a result of heterosexual contact with male partners who contracted HIV through intravenous drug use (Centers for Disease control and Prevention). Recently, the role of violence has been questioned as a primary risk factor for HIV (Wingood, 1992; Fullilove, 1990). Two of the greatest public health crises in America, HIV and violence, are concentrated in America~s inner-cities and disproportionately affect some of the most disadvantaged segments of our populations. Women currently account for approximately 24% of homicide deaths (Rosenberg & Fenley, 1991) and 18% of AIDS cases (MMWR, 1995). Understanding the multiple effects of violence on women~s lives, their sexual practices, and substance abuse patterns, can aid in determining the network of women~s HIV risks. Although many studies document the occurrence of violence in the lives of women at the highest risk of HIV infection, none have empirically established violence as a risk factor of HIV. The complex relationship between women~s risk of HIV and their experiences with violence and substance abuse will form the basis of my research.
| Sherman, S G; Latkin, C A (2001) Intimate relationship characteristics associated with condom use among drug users and their sex partners: a multilevel analysis. Drug Alcohol Depend 64:97-104 |
