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Facilitators and Barriers Related to Voluntary Counseling and Testing for HIV Among Young Adults in Bo, Sierra Leone

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Abstract

In 2012, we interviewed a population-based sample of 285 young adult residents (age 18–35 years) of the city of Bo, Sierra Leone, about their attitudes toward and experience with voluntary testing and counseling (VCT) for HIV. In total, 33 % of the participants (44 % of women and 25 % of men) reported having been tested for HIV at least once. More than 85 % of those not previously tested indicated a willingness to be tested in the near future, but untested participants were nearly twice as likely as tested participants to report fears about family/partner rejection, job loss, and other potential consequences of testing. More than 90 % of participants expressed a high desire for testing privacy, and the majority reported a preference for VCT at a facility far from home where no one would know them. Social barriers to HIV testing remain a challenge for HIV prevention in Sierra Leone.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mercy Hospital, Kulanda Town, Bo, Sierra Leone

    Shalinee Bhoobun, Mohamed A. Koroma & Mohamed J. Kamara

  2. Department of Global and Community Health, George Mason University, 4400 University Drive MS 5B7, Fairfax, VA, 22030, USA

    Anuradha Jetty & Kathryn H. Jacobsen

  3. National AIDS Control Program, Freetown, Sierra Leone

    Mohamed Kabia

  4. Methodist Youth Resource Centre, Bo, Sierra Leone

    Reginald Coulson

  5. Mercy Hospital Research Laboratory, Kulanda Town, Bo, Sierra Leone

    Rashid Ansumana

Authors
  1. Shalinee Bhoobun
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  2. Anuradha Jetty
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  3. Mohamed A. Koroma
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Correspondence to Kathryn H. Jacobsen.

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Bhoobun, S., Jetty, A., Koroma, M.A. et al. Facilitators and Barriers Related to Voluntary Counseling and Testing for HIV Among Young Adults in Bo, Sierra Leone. J Community Health 39, 514–520 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-013-9788-4

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