Summary Report: Behavioural Surveillance Survey in Kerala, India: Part 12

Table 7: Sources of information on HIV/AIDS

Posters were also cited as another common source of information on HIV/AIDS. More than 50% of the students had listed 9 sources of information, which were different from those mentioned above. These sources included lecturers, fellow students, friends, relatives and documentary films. Sex workers had listed least number of sources of information, which included cinema, newspapers, posters and television. Less than 50% FSWs were able to list any one source of information.

Three most commonly recalled messages on HIV/AIDS

The most commonly recalled message among all sub-population groups was 'Use condoms/Nirodh' (Table 8). 'Be faithful to one partner/single sex partner' was a less recalled message. Auto rickshaw drivers also cited 'No casual sex' and male plantation workers had recalled 'If infected, you can live only seven years' as other messages. However, large percentage sub-population groups could not recall any specific message.

Table 8: Messages recalled on HIV/AIDS

Reported incidence of genital ulcer/discharge and first step taken after onset of symptoms

Twelve percent of the sex workers, nine percent male clients and two percent auto rickshaw drivers and students each had reported having genital ulcer/discharge during the previous year. The responses of the sex workers regarding the first step taken after onset of symptoms varied between the use of once procured prescriptions, treatment from a qualified private doctor, a practitioner of other systems of medicine and to a lesser extent, a qualified doctor in a government facility.

Condoms

Almost all the respondents in the survey had heard about condoms except for one percent sex workers, half a percent of the male plantation workers and five percent of the male university students. The two most common places cited for procuring condoms were medical and petty shops (Table 9). Another site, though less mentioned, was the departmental store. Among male university students, after medical shops, a high proportion (64%) had cited a government hospital or family planning centre as a place from where they could get condoms.

Table 9: Three most commonly cited places where condoms can be obtained

Places Sub-groups

(figures in %) Bunk/petty shop Medical shop/Pharmacy Departmental store/Market Hospital

Govt. Hospital/Family planning center

Time taken for obtaining a condom

A total of 94% auto rickshaw drivers and male clients each had said that they could get a condom in less than an hour, less than three fourth students and half the plantation workers felt they could do so within the hour (Figure 15). Less than half the plantation workers and about one-tenth male university students had said that they needed between an hour to a day to get condoms.

Alcohol and drug consumption

A total of 18% male clients had said that they consumed alcohol everyday, which was a higher proportion than the reported alcohol use in other groups (2-4%). Consumption of alcohol once a week was reported by about one tenth of the students and plantation workers, one fifth sex workers and drivers, and half the clients of sex workers (Figure 16).