During the first year of the USAID Dialogue on HIV and TB Project, quantitative research surveys were conducted among PWID in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Activities had not yet been launched among PWID in Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan at the time of conducting this research. Using the TRaC research tool (see section on Monitoring and Evaluation for description of TRaC), the project developed a general profile of a PWID in each country. Statistical data was used to develop the following table on social-demographic and behavioral information:

 

PWID PROFILE: Results of Project Baseline TRaC Survey
	Kazakhstan	Kyrgyzstan	Tajikistan
Male (vs. Female)	93.6%	86.4%	79.1%
Average Age	29.6 years	36.3 years	31.8 years
Single/never married Not married/cohabitating Married/cohabitating Widowed/divorced/separated	50.4% 23.0% 16.6% 10.0%	25.6% 9.4% 39.8% 25.2%	35.9% 10.8% 33.3% 20.0%
Nationality	52.8% Russian 34.4% Kazakh	35.6% Russian 26.9% Uzbek 22.3% Kyrgyz	36.7 Tajik 16.5% Uzbek 15.1% Russian
Mean number of years injecting	4.9 years	5.1 years	4.6 years
Mean age of first injection	22.6 years	28 years	25.8 years
Shared needle at last injection	29.2	21.7	29.5
Shared injecting equipment (spoon, cup, cotton, filter, rinsing water) at last injection	39.8	23.2	34.1
Has suffered from overdose in last year	24.1%	23.7%	34.1%
Has been arrested for drug-related crimes	50.1%	38.3%	53.9%
Has received HIV testing and received their results in last year	35.4%	52.5%	32%
Has been tested for TB in the last 12 months	42.5%	46.9%	19.3%

 

 

Following the partner data analysis workshop, data collected during the TRaC process was used to develop an archetype, a “typical” member of the target population. Information was supplemented by in-debt interviews with members of the target population and outreach workers working closely with them. The following narrative profiles were developed:

 

Narrative Profile of a PWID in Kazakhstan – Bolat

Bolat is a Russian-speaking 24-year-old who lives with his mother. He attended a technical school and now finds temporary jobs - primarily to fund his drug use. He's been injecting drugs for two years and injects about four times a day. His daily routine is centered around buying and using drugs, and getting money to buy drugs. He often asks others to purchase needles/syringes for him. When he injects with his friends (usually in the entrance of a building or in a dark area on the streets), he shares injecting equipment and at times needles and syringes. He knows about HIV transmission methods and TB symptoms, but doesn’t think about HIV or TB and hasn’t been tested. He is afraid that his parents and friends will find out about his drug use and of getting caught by the police. He is also afraid of getting a medical exam, because providers would see his marks from injecting.

 

Narrative Profile of a PWID in Kyrgyzstan – Aibek

Aibek is 35 years old and is Uzbek/Kyrgyz. He is married with a child. He is unemployed and has completed secondary school. Aibek has been injecting drugs for 5 years and usually injects 2-3 times per day. He trusts his friends and injects with them, sometimes sharing injecting equipment, even though he knows the risks of HIV transmission through injecting practices. Aibek has casual sex partners and also visits sex workers but doesn’t use condoms with either, or with his wife. As a result, Aibek had an STI and sought treatment last year. Aibek knows where he can be tested for TB, but he has many misconceptions about TB and has never been tested.

 

Narrative Profile of a PWID in Tajikistan – Murod

Murod is a 30-year-old Tajik who has some secondary education. He is unemployed, lives in an urban area and has been injecting for less than 5 years. Murod understands how HIV is transmitted, but he often shares needles, syringes and injection equipment with his good friends. He doesn’t use condoms with regular or casual partners but uses them sometimes with commercial partners. Murod doesn’t feel he is at risk for HIV since he shares injecting equipment only with his good friends. He has never been tested for HIV and doesn’t know where to go for testing. Murod doesn’t know how know much about TB and doesn’t know where he can be tested. As a result, he has never been tested for TB.