Internalized Homonegativity and HIV Testing and Counseling among MSM and Transgender Women in San Salvador, El Salvador

A paper by Katherine Andrinopoulos (MEASURE Evaluation), John J. Hembling (MEASURE Evaluation), Flor de Maria Hernandez (TEPHINET), and Maria Elena Guardado (TEPHINET) will be the topic of a panel session at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the Population Association of America. The panel presentation, titled "Internalized Homonegativity and HIV Testing and Counseling among MSM and Transgender Women in San Salvador, El Salvador," will take place April 12 at 8:30AM. The panel will be part of Session 106 on the health of sexual minorities. 

Panel description:

HIV testing and counseling (HTC) among key populations at risk is a critical prevention strategy in concentrated epidemic settings. A cross sectional survey using respondent driven sampling was conducted among men who have sex with men (MSM, n=506) and transgender women (TW, n= 164) in San Salvador (N=670, total sample) to determine correlates of having ever tested for HIV. Most participants had tested for HIV (75%). HIV testing was more likely among participants who: were older (aOR 2.27), had more lifetime sexual partners (aOR 1.88), knew more people who had tested (aOR 1.92), knew someone living with HIV (aOR 1.78), or were survivors of sexual assault (aOR 2.83). Among MSM, high internalized homonegativity was negatively associated with testing (aOR 0.42). Social networks should be used to engage MSM and TW in HTC. Stigma related to sexual orientation and gender identity must be addressed to increase HTC.