Female sex workers (FSWs) are at heightened risk of HIV infection. This research aims to determine the prevalence of HIV and relevant risk factors and related behavior among FSWs in Ba Ria - Vung Tau, a southeast province of Vietnam. 420 FSWs were interviewed using a structured questionnaire and biological samples tested for HIV. 2.6 % were found to be HIV positive. HIV infection was significantly higher in FSWs who had low income (≤AUD 200 per month), have had anal sex, have had sex with injecting drug users, and had a low level of HIV/AIDS-related knowledge. Improved employment opportunities and income are important to reduce the pressure for young women to engage in sex work for income purposes, but in public health terms, existing HIV treatment, prevention and intervention programs needs better targeting and improvements to reduce the risk of HIV infection.
BackgroundFSWs are a high-risk population group for the transmission and acquisition of STIs and HIV. This research investigated socio-demographic characteristics and risk behaviours among FSWs in Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Vietnam.MethodsData were collected using a cross-sectional survey of 420 direct/indirectly employed FSWs between January–May, 2014, from 2 cities/6 districts in Ba Ria – Vung Tau. FSWs were interviewed using a structured questionnaire and biological samples taken and tested for STI/HIV. Data were entered (Epidata 3.1) and analysed (SPSS 20.0) using univariate and multivariate analyses to investigate the associations between STIs and risk-related factors.Results166 direct and 254 indirect FSWs participated in the survey, with a median age of 27 years, within a range of 18–43 years. Many (43.3%) had minimal education (grade 5 or less). Most claimed religious affiliation (90.5%) and 91.7% were of Kinh ethnicity. At 63.1%, the unemployment rate before becoming FSWs was high. There were significant differences between direct/indirect types of FSWs in terms of: education levels (OR = 2.46, 95% CI: 1.65–3.67, p = 0.001); marital status, including married or cohabitating (OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.43–3.207, p = 0.001); unemployment before becoming FSWs (OR = 2.36, 95% CI: 1.54–3.63, p = 0.001); low income ≤ A$200 (OR = 3.74, 95% CI: 1.83–7.65, p = 0.001); and number of paying clients in the last month >15 (OR = 24.88, 95% CI: 14.73–42.01, p = 0.001). Inconsistent condom use with regular and new clients was 21.8% and 15.2% respectively. Most (89.0%) FSWs performed oral sex, also a high proportion (82.4%) of them consumed alcohol. Nearly half (48.3%) have had sex when drunk. Regarding drug use, 23.4% FSWs have used drugs and 26.1% have clients who use or inject drugs.ConclusionsFSWs in Vietnam need targeted intervention programs and improved services to prevent HIV and STIs infection. Administrative and political support for improved health education and services are required to prevent the epidemic from spreading.
Test cases for distributed real-time systems are described with time-dependent cause-effect graphs including communication channels, messages and time requirements. The specification of time requirements for a test object uses time limits and intervals. In early development phases test reliability can be improved by means of configuration specification of a test object. The configuration consists of test object structure, node processing times and transmissions times between nodes. This information delivers more accurate data for test planning. This paper describes the specification of time properties in test cases, in test objects and their verification. It includes the selection of the communication paths between considered nodes. The transmission times between nodes are calculated dependent on transmission line parameters. In summary processing time along the communication path is calculated. The time comparison considers min/max values of time requirements and min/max processing time of the test object. This approach is universally valid and belongs to the class of white-box system testing. The procedure was approved for master-slave systems in a building security system.
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