Drug Use and HIV Risks among Migrant Workers on the DelMarVa Peninsula

Abstract

Because high rates of drug use have been documented in the migrant farm worker population, the National Institute on Drug Abuse funded the Migrant Health Study to examine HIV risk behaviors among drug-using farm workers and their sexual partners. Many of these individuals were home-based in South Florida and migrated during the work season to various points along the Eastern Migratory Stream. The focus of this paper is a description of the characteristics and behaviors of the 151 respondents contacted on the DelMarVa Peninsula during 1994 and 1995. The data indicate that drug use was widespread in this population, a significant proportion were at risk for HIV infection, and 6% were HIV positive. As a result of these findings, public health agencies on the peninsula have instituted HIV education programs in those clinics utilized by both local and transient agricultural workers.

The Effects of Problem Drinking and Sexual Risk Among Mexican Migrant Workers on Their Community of Origin

“…Although there is a growing history of research on alcohol use (Alaniz 1994; Bletzer 2004; Chi, White-Means, and McClain 1992; García 2004; McDermott and Lee 1990; Watson 1997; Watson et al 1985) and sexual risk (Castro et al 1988; Ford et al 2001; Goicoechea-Balbona and Grief 1992; Inciardi 1999; Magaña 1991; Weatherby et al 1997) among farmworkers in the United States, only recently has consideration been paid to the effects of these behaviors on workers' home communities (Fagetti 2000; Hirsch et al 2002, 2007; Lurie 2003). A focus on both sending and receiving communities is critical for understanding problem drinking and sexual risk among migrant populations, since it allows us to consider cultural—often highly gendered and context-specific—norms that influence drinking and sexual comportment in both locales, as well as the structural conditions that influence these behaviors.…”

Prevalence, patterns and predictors of substance use among Latino migrant men in a new receiving community

“…Wide ranges of drug use among LMM have been reported in the literature: crack (1.6–60%), marijuana (16.6–48.3%) and heroin (less than 1–7.3%; Inciardi et al, 1999; Kissinger et al, 2008; Organista and Kubo, 2005; Valdez et al, 2009). The amount of injection drug use (IDU) among LMM varies in the literature from less than 1% to 28% (Denner et al, 2005; Inciardi et al, 1999; Organista and Kubo, 2005).…”

“…The amount of injection drug use (IDU) among LMM varies in the literature from less than 1% to 28% (Denner et al, 2005; Inciardi et al, 1999; Organista and Kubo, 2005). The prevalence of alcohol use, however, appears to be more consistently high.…”

“…The prevalence of alcohol use, however, appears to be more consistently high. The prevalence of alcohol consumption in any quantity has been estimated to be greater than 77–90% among Latinos in migrant worker communities (Inciardi et al, 1999; Valdez et al, 2009) and 20–52% report binge drinking in the last month (Rhodes et al, 2010; Watson et al, 1985; Watson, 1997). …”

HIV and sexually transmitted disease risk among male Hispanic/Latino migrant farmworkers in the Southeast: Findings from a pilot CBPR study

“…Although studies documenting HIV infection rates among farmworkers are limited and tend to be outdated, studies have documented that behavioral factors place farmworkers at high risk for HIV. Lifetime use of condoms among farmworkers has been identified as low while sex with multiple partners, partners with histories of STD infection, and commercial sex workers have been identified as relatively common [Jones, et al, 1991; Organista, et al, 1996; McVea, 1997; Organista, et al, 1997; Aranda-Naranjo and Gaskins, 1998; Inciardi, et al, 1999; Ford, et al, 2001; Sanchez, et al,2004; Fernandez, et al, 2004; Rhodes, 2009]. …”