Sihanoukville Sex Workers Drink Too Much - and So Do their Clients.
Posted: Fri Jun 03, 2016 8:09 pm
Breaking news - in a soon to be published report, it will be revealed that bar girls and their clients drink too much alcohol. Not sure what the guidelines are for "too much" alcohol consumption, but something like more than 2 beers a day is generally considered unhealthy drinking.This study was conducted in Sihanoukville by a team of researchers from San Francisco. I'm not questioning the findings, but I wonder what is the point of such research ? Anywhere where sex is on sale, both buyers and sellers are likely to indulge in drink and drugs - and I think that's universal and doesn't necessitate much research.Same in the US and worldwide.
So, what's to discover here ? 9% of the sex workers researched in Sihanoukville tested positive for HIV. This is a lot compared to the general Cambodian population, but relatively small compared to another test of Bangkok sex workers. ( Tested in 2013. Fifteen initial participants recruited 707 consenting participants who completed a behavioural questionnaire, and provided oral fluid for HIV testing, and urine for sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing. Overall HIV prevalence was 20.2% (95% confidence interval [CI] 16.3-24.7. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23512512)Alcohol a risk for sex workers, study finds
Both Cambodian women engaging in sex work and their male clients engage in unhealthy alcohol use, according to the findings of a soon-to-be-published study.
Led by Dr Marie-Claude Couture of the University of San Francisco, a team of researchers administered a questionnaire to 100 women in Preah Sihanouk province who reported having had sex in the preceding three months in return for money, gifts or goods. Another questionnaire was administered to 100 self-identified clients.
Participants were asked to rate their alcohol intake, and the following morning they were invited to have their blood tested for HIV positivity as well as a biomarker called phosphatidylethanol (PEth). PEth is useful for detecting heavy drinking patterns because it stays in the blood for two to three weeks after a bout of heavy drinking, according to the report.
The results showed that 60 per cent of women and 42 per cent of men had a level of PEth in their blood that indicates “unhealthy alcohol consumption”. The study also found that men tended to under-report their alcohol use. The report defines unhealthy alcohol use as including “risky drinking and alcohol-use disorders”.
The majority of women (71 per cent) participating in the study reported that their sex work took place in the course of their jobs as entertainment workers, while the remainder’s took place on a freelance basis or in brothels. Nine per cent of all women surveyed tested HIV positive, nationwide HIV prevalence is currently 1.6 per cent.
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/a ... tudy-finds
Again, not contesting the findings, but wondering what is the point of this research.
