‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa
Background: Sensitisation training can reduce judgemental and discriminatory attitudes amongst healthcare workers. The ‘Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa’ aimed to improve access to appropriate and non-judgemental health services for ‘ke...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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AOSIS
2019-04-01
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| Series: | Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/909 |
| _version_ | 1811291330841673728 |
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| author | Zoe Duby Francisco Fong-Jaen Busisiwe Nkosi Benjamin Brown Andrew Scheibe |
| author_facet | Zoe Duby Francisco Fong-Jaen Busisiwe Nkosi Benjamin Brown Andrew Scheibe |
| author_sort | Zoe Duby |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Sensitisation training can reduce judgemental and discriminatory attitudes amongst healthcare workers. The ‘Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa’ aimed to improve access to appropriate and non-judgemental health services for ‘key populations’, specifically men who have sex with men, sex workers and people who use drugs, through the sensitisation of healthcare workers.
Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the integrated key population sensitisation training intervention for healthcare workers, conducted between 2013 and 2014 in South Africa.
Methods: This study used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative methods compared attitudes between healthcare workers who received the training intervention and those who did not. Quantitative methods were used to compare similar changes in awareness amongst healthcare workers before and after receiving the training. We explored shifts in attitudes towards key populations, changes in awareness of health issues related to stigma, discrimination, and changes in capacity to manage sexual health and HIV risk behaviours, including substance use and anal sex.
Results: The findings indicate that the training intervention resulted in a shift in attitudes, increased empathy for key populations, a reduction in negative and discriminatory moral-based judgements towards key populations and their behaviours, and increased self-perceived capacity to provide appropriate health services to key populations. Over 70% of healthcare workers trained in this programme strongly agreed that this intervention helped to increase awareness of psychosocial vulnerabilities of key populations, and address stigmatising attitudes.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that sensitisation training increases healthcare workers’ knowledge and awareness about specific HIV-related health needs and psychosocial vulnerabilities of key populations, reduces moralising and judgemental attitudes, and results in healthcare workers feeling more skilled to provide appropriate and sensitive services. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T04:27:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-606d139fb1844482b831149f3777f492 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1608-9693 2078-6751 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T04:27:37Z |
| publishDate | 2019-04-01 |
| publisher | AOSIS |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-606d139fb1844482b831149f3777f4922022-12-22T03:02:26ZengAOSISSouthern African Journal of HIV Medicine1608-96932078-67512019-04-01201e1e710.4102/sajhivmed.v20i1.909617‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South AfricaZoe Duby0Francisco Fong-Jaen1Busisiwe Nkosi2Benjamin Brown3Andrew Scheibe4Division of Social and Behavioural Sciences, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa; and, Desmond Tutu HIV Centre, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape TownSchool of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape TownDesmond Tutu HIV Centre, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape TownDesmond Tutu HIV Centre, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape TownDesmond Tutu HIV Centre, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape TownBackground: Sensitisation training can reduce judgemental and discriminatory attitudes amongst healthcare workers. The ‘Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa’ aimed to improve access to appropriate and non-judgemental health services for ‘key populations’, specifically men who have sex with men, sex workers and people who use drugs, through the sensitisation of healthcare workers. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the integrated key population sensitisation training intervention for healthcare workers, conducted between 2013 and 2014 in South Africa. Methods: This study used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative methods compared attitudes between healthcare workers who received the training intervention and those who did not. Quantitative methods were used to compare similar changes in awareness amongst healthcare workers before and after receiving the training. We explored shifts in attitudes towards key populations, changes in awareness of health issues related to stigma, discrimination, and changes in capacity to manage sexual health and HIV risk behaviours, including substance use and anal sex. Results: The findings indicate that the training intervention resulted in a shift in attitudes, increased empathy for key populations, a reduction in negative and discriminatory moral-based judgements towards key populations and their behaviours, and increased self-perceived capacity to provide appropriate health services to key populations. Over 70% of healthcare workers trained in this programme strongly agreed that this intervention helped to increase awareness of psychosocial vulnerabilities of key populations, and address stigmatising attitudes. Conclusion: The findings suggest that sensitisation training increases healthcare workers’ knowledge and awareness about specific HIV-related health needs and psychosocial vulnerabilities of key populations, reduces moralising and judgemental attitudes, and results in healthcare workers feeling more skilled to provide appropriate and sensitive services.https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/909Men who have sex with menSex workersPeople who use drugsSensitisation TrainingHealthcare workersSouth Africa |
| spellingShingle | Zoe Duby Francisco Fong-Jaen Busisiwe Nkosi Benjamin Brown Andrew Scheibe ‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine Men who have sex with men Sex workers People who use drugs Sensitisation Training Healthcare workers South Africa |
| title | ‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa |
| title_full | ‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | ‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | ‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa |
| title_short | ‘We must treat them like all the other people’: Evaluating the Integrated Key Populations Sensitivity Training Programme for Healthcare Workers in South Africa |
| title_sort | we must treat them like all the other people evaluating the integrated key populations sensitivity training programme for healthcare workers in south africa |
| topic | Men who have sex with men Sex workers People who use drugs Sensitisation Training Healthcare workers South Africa |
| url | https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/909 |
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