Identifying Which Place Characteristics are Associated with the Odds of Recent HIV Testing in a Large Sample of People Who Inject Drugs in 19 US Metropolitan Areas

for the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance Study Group

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

This exploratory analysis investigates relationships of place characteristics to HIV testing among people who inject drugs (PWID). We used CDC’s 2012 National HIV Behavioral Surveillance (NHBS) data among PWID from 19 US metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs); we restricted the analytic sample to PWID self-reporting being HIV negative (N = 7477). Administrative data were analyzed to describe the 1. Sociodemographic Composition; 2. Economic disadvantage; 3. Healthcare Service/Law enforcement; and 4. HIV burden of the ZIP codes, counties, and MSAs where PWID lived. Multilevel models tested associations of place characteristics with HIV testing. Fifty-eight percent of PWID reported past-year testing. MSA-level per capita correctional expenditures were positively associated with recent HIV testing among black PWID, but not white PWID. Higher MSA-level household income and imbalanced sex ratios (more women than men) in the MSA were associated with higher odds of testing. HIV screening for PWID is suboptimal (58%) and needs improvement. Identifying place characteristics associated with testing among PWID can strengthen service allocation and interventions in areas of need to increase access to HIV testing.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)318-335
Number of pages18
JournalAIDS and Behavior
Volume23
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 15 2019

Keywords

  • HIV testing
  • National HIV Behavioral Surveillance
  • People who inject drugs
  • Place characteristics
  • US metropolitan statistical areas

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Psychology
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Infectious Diseases

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