title: Sex work practices and condom use in female sex workers in Sydney.
abstract: The aim of this study was to determine sex work practices and predictors of condom use among female sex workers (SWs) in Sydney. SWs from two centres completed a self-administered questionnaire covering demographic and sexual characteristics and sex work practices. One hundred and forty-eight international (born in Asia) and 141 local SWs (born in Australia, New Zealand or the UK) were recruited. Local SWs saw more clients per shift than international SWs (P = 0.002), but international SWs worked more shifts per week than local SWs (P = 0.001). International SWs used condoms less consistently at work than local SWs (P = 0.001). About 37% of international SWs never used condoms with non-paying partners, compared with 14% of local SWs (P = 0.01). Speaking Thai (odds ratio [OR] 8.9, 95% confidence interval [CI]; 3.19-24.87) or Chinese (OR 17.4; 95% CI 4.98-60.89) (both P < 0.001) and previous sex work in Thailand (OR 10.0 95% CI 2.31-43.52; P = 0.02) were associated with inconsistent condom use. Strategies to improve condom use need to be evaluated.
authors.affiliation: Sexually Transmitted Infections Research Centre, The University of Sydney, Marian Villa, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fox
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Tideman
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gilmour
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Marks
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: van Beek
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mindel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001208:Asia; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D009517:New South Wales; D009520:New Zealand / Q000208:ethnology; D011477:Sex Work; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000208:ethnology