TY - JOUR
T1 - A qualitative assessment of stakeholder perceptions and socio-cultural influences on the acceptability of harm reduction programs in Tijuana, Mexico
AU - Philbin, Morgan M.
AU - Lozada, Remedios
AU - Zúñiga, María Luisa
AU - Mantsios, Andrea
AU - Case, Patricia
AU - Magis-Rodriguez, Carlos
AU - Latkin, Carl A.
AU - Strathdee, Steffanie A.
N1 - Funding Information:
Proyecto El Cuete was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (R01 DA019829). Ms. Philbin was partially supported by grant number 5R25TW007506 from the Fogarty International Center at the National Institutes of Health. This work was also supported in part by the National Institutes of Mental Health, grant # 1K01MH072353. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of study participants and PRO-COMUSIDA and Prevencasa staff for assistance with data collection; Centro Nacional para la Prevención y el Control del VIH/SIDA (CENSIDA); and Instituto de Servicios de Salud de Estado de Baja California (ISESALUD).
PY - 2008/11/20
Y1 - 2008/11/20
N2 - Background: The Mexico-U.S. border region is experiencing rising rates of blood-borne infections among injection drug users (IDUs), emphasizing the need for harm reduction interventions. Methods: We assessed the religious and cultural factors affecting the acceptability and feasibility of three harm reduction interventions - Needle exchange programs (NEPs), syringe vending machines, and safer injection facilities (SIFs) - in Tijuana, Mexico. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 40 community stakeholders to explore cultural and societal-related themes. Results: Themes that emerged included Tijuana's location as a border city, family values, and culture as a mediator of social stigma and empathy towards IDUs. Perception of low levels of both awareness and socio-cultural readiness for harm reduction interventions was noted. Religious culture emerged as a theme, highlighting the important role religious leaders play in determining community responses to harm reduction and rehabilitation strategies for IDUs. The influence of religious culture on stakeholders' opinions concerning harm reduction interventions was evidenced by discussions of family and social values, stigma, and resulting policies. Conclusion: Religion and politics were described as both a perceived benefit and deterrent, highlighting the need to further explore the overall influences of culture on the acceptability and implementation of harm reduction programs for drug users.
AB - Background: The Mexico-U.S. border region is experiencing rising rates of blood-borne infections among injection drug users (IDUs), emphasizing the need for harm reduction interventions. Methods: We assessed the religious and cultural factors affecting the acceptability and feasibility of three harm reduction interventions - Needle exchange programs (NEPs), syringe vending machines, and safer injection facilities (SIFs) - in Tijuana, Mexico. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 40 community stakeholders to explore cultural and societal-related themes. Results: Themes that emerged included Tijuana's location as a border city, family values, and culture as a mediator of social stigma and empathy towards IDUs. Perception of low levels of both awareness and socio-cultural readiness for harm reduction interventions was noted. Religious culture emerged as a theme, highlighting the important role religious leaders play in determining community responses to harm reduction and rehabilitation strategies for IDUs. The influence of religious culture on stakeholders' opinions concerning harm reduction interventions was evidenced by discussions of family and social values, stigma, and resulting policies. Conclusion: Religion and politics were described as both a perceived benefit and deterrent, highlighting the need to further explore the overall influences of culture on the acceptability and implementation of harm reduction programs for drug users.
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U2 - 10.1186/1477-7517-5-36
DO - 10.1186/1477-7517-5-36
M3 - Article
C2 - 19021899
AN - SCOPUS:58149337096
SN - 1477-7517
VL - 5
JO - Harm reduction journal
JF - Harm reduction journal
M1 - 36
ER -