Knowledge and Attitude About Sexually Transmitted Infections Amongst Truck Drivers in Southern Punjab, Pakistan

Assessment of COVID-19-related awareness, knowledge, prevention practices and challenges faced by truck drivers in major transport cities of India: a cross-sectional survey

OBJECTIVES

To assess COVID-19-related awareness and knowledge among truck drivers across India and report prevention practices followed, and challenges faced, by them during the COVID-19 lockdown.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Delhi, Kanpur, Kolkata and Bangalore from July to September 2020.

PARTICIPANTS

Data were collected in Hindi using a structured questionnaire via telephonic interviews. Minimum 200 drivers were included from each location.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Sociodemographic profile, awareness regarding COVID-19, knowledge regarding infection sources, disease spread and vulnerable populations, prevention practices followed and challenges faced. Information sources were also assessed.

RESULTS

Fisher's exact test and Analysis of variance (ANOVA) test were used to check for significant differences across proportions. P value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Overall, 1246 drivers were included, with 72% response rate. Of 1246 drivers, 65% were 30-50 years of age. A majority correctly answered knowledge questions regarding communicability (95%) and fatality (66%). Fifty per cent drivers were aware of treatability of the disease, while only 43% and 24% correctly reported all signs and symptoms and routes of transmission, respectively. No driver was aware of all high-risk populations. Overall Knowledge Score is significantly associated with region. Mobile phones were the primary source of information across all regions. Over two-third drivers follow all prevention practices regularly, which differed significantly across regions. Following standard prevention practices was positively correlated with higher knowledge scores and was significantly correlated with mask use. Worry about the disease was common. Less than 40% drivers received full payment for work during this period, while 25% drivers were unable to return home due to the pandemic. Seven per cent and 26% drivers had either limited or no access to food and health services, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Awareness activities and employer provisioned social security/health insurance might safeguard this vulnerable population till the pandemic fully abates as well as in similar situations in the future.

Psychosocial factors predicting risky sexual behaviour among long distance truck drivers in Lagos, Nigeria

Long distance truck drivers (LDTDs) have been identified as one of the groups at higher risk for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Understanding how certain social and psychological variables that have a strong theoretical basis contribute to sexual risk behaviour will guide in the implementation process of HIV risk-reduction intervention in the trucking population. In line with the conceptualisation of Information, Motivation and Behavioural skills model, we examined the extent that HIV knowledge, attitude towards condom use, peer support to condom use, perceived vulnerability to HIV/AIDS, and condom use self-efficacy will independently and jointly explain sexual risk behaviours of LDTDs in a haulage company in Lagos, Nigeria. A cross-sectional survey design was used and 154 drivers with ages ranging from 27 to 68 years (M = 44.03, SD = 8.82) completed copies of a questionnaire comprising demographics and measures of psychological variables. Psychological factors that included HIV knowledge, attitude towards condom use, perceived vulnerability to HIV/AIDS, peer support to condom use, and condom use self-efficacy significantly jointly predicted sexual risk behaviours (R2 = .59, F(5, 148) = 42.63; p < .05), by accounting for about 59% of the explained variance in sexual risk behaviours. Social factors that included age, number of years of education, number of wives, number of intercourses in the last three months, number of partners apart from primary partners, and number of weeks spent outside home significantly jointly predicted sexual risk behaviour (R2 = .15, F(6, 147) = 4.39; p < .05) by accounting for about 15% of the explained variance in sexual risk behaviour among the drivers. It is concluded that all the psychological and social factors examined as predictor variables could jointly play important roles in prevention intervention programmes for reducing sexual risk behaviours of LDTDs. Stakeholders should sensitise LDTDs on the need to realise that they are a high-risk group and are more vulnerable to HIV infection; thus, behaviour change is indispensable in their sexual relationships.