"It's not rocket science, what I do": Self-directed harm reduction strategies among drug using ethno-racially diverse gay and bisexual men.
BACKGROUND
Research on harm reduction has typically focused on broad-based or organisational strategies such as needle exchange and opiate substitute programmes. Less attention has been paid to the self-directed harm reduction practices of substance users themselves. Few studies have focused on sexual minority populations such as gay and bisexual men and fewer still on the marginalised groups that constitute these populations. This paper identifies self-directed harm reduction strategies among substance using ethno-racially diverse gay and bisexual men.


METHODS
This article presents findings from the Party Drugs Study in Toronto's gay dance club scene, a community-based qualitative study in Toronto, Canada. We present a thematic analysis of interviews with 43 gay and bisexual men from diverse ethno-racial backgrounds about their substance use in the gay dance club scene.


RESULTS
We identify five self-directed harm reduction strategies: rationing, controlling or avoiding mixing, controlling quality, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and following guidelines during substance use.


CONCLUSIONS
We discuss our findings in relation to prior research and to critical theory. We suggest that drug users' awareness of possible harm, and their personal investment in harm reduction, constitute a viable platform from which community-based and public health organisations may promote and strengthen harm reduction among gay and bisexual men from ethno-racially diverse backgrounds.
AIDS Committee of Toronto, Canada.
Nicole R
NR
Greenspan
Jeffrey P
JP
Aguinaldo
Winston
W
Husbands
James
J
Murray
Peter
P
Ho
Noulmook
N
Sutdhibhasilp
José
J
Cedano
Chris
C
Lau
Trevor
T
Gray
Rajendra
R
Maharaj
D044466:Asian People / Q000208:ethnology; D001727:Bisexuality / Q000208:ethnology; D017691:Caribbean Region / Q000208:ethnology; D003615:Dancing; D055030:Drug Users / Q000523:psychology*; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000378:metabolism; D040261:Harm Reduction; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D044468:Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; D011786:Quality Control; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012747:Sexual Partners; D012931:Social Environment; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology*