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Background: HIV notifications among people born in sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia have increased in Australia in the last decade. People born in these regions have the highest rates of HIV diagnosis by region of birth and are overrepresented in late or advanced presentation of HIV infection.Methods: This study developed and tested a questionnaire for reliability through test-retest. A cross-sectional survey using intercept and online recruitment of HIV knowledge and use of health services was then undertaken among people born in sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia, who had arrived in Australia less than 10 years ago and were living in Western Australia (n = 209). Results were reported on by gender and length of time in Australia.Results: Participants had a reasonable knowledge of HIV transmission, but held a number of incorrect beliefs. Two-thirds (65%) of participants reported a barrier to accessing health services in Australia. Just over a third (34%) of participants had ever tested for HIV, despite indicating that they believed HIV testing was important.Conclusions: This project indicates a very low rate of HIV testing among this priority population. Further action is required to improve early diagnosis of HIV and reduce onward transmission of HIV infection within these communities. SO WHAT?: We need targeted interventions that extend beyond knowledge to increase HIV testing rates among this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to explore the impact of potential new technologies in the area of prenatal screening, we conducted a baseline study using qualitative interviews to explore women’s attitudes and knowledge regarding current and future prenatal screening technology and methods. Three cohorts were interviewed, including healthy women without children, healthy women with healthy children, and healthy women with children who have de novo genetic disorders. This study aimed to assess the baseline understanding and attitudes of women in Western Australia. Women from each cohort demonstrated adequate knowledge of the differences between screening and diagnostic tests, but were mostly unaware of the conditions for which screening is currently available except Down syndrome. Women who had children with de novo genetic conditions were generally aware of more genetic conditions than women with or without healthy children. Most women recognised the genetic basis for the conditions mentioned. Two thirds of women understood that Down syndrome is a chromosomal condition; just one third recognised that the phenotype is variable. Most women expressed a positive attitude towards Down syndrome. Social acceptance of children with Down syndrome was commonly mentioned as a concern. While the majority of women with children supported screening for Down syndrome, they emphasised that it must be an autonomous choice. General knowledge of genetic conditions illustrated that women are exposed to diverse conditions from lived experience as well as the media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issue addressed Rates of sexually transmissible infections among young people are high, and there is a need for innovative, youth-focused sexual health promotion programs. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Sharing Stories youth theatre program, which uses interactive theatre and drama-based strategies to engage and educate multicultural youth on sexual health issues. The effectiveness of using drama-based evaluation methods is also discussed. Methods The youth theatre program participants were 18 multicultural youth from South East Asian, African and Middle Eastern backgrounds aged between 14 and 21 years. Four sexual health drama scenarios and a sexual health questionnaire were used to measure changes in knowledge and attitudes. Results Participants reported being confident talking to and supporting their friends with regards to safe sex messages, improved their sexual health knowledge and demonstrated a positive shift in their attitudes towards sexual health. Drama-based evaluation methods were effective in engaging multicultural youth and worked well across the cultures and age groups. Conclusions Theatre and drama-based sexual health promotion strategies are an effective method for up-skilling young people from multicultural backgrounds to be peer educators and good communicators of sexual health information. Drama-based evaluation methods are engaging for young people and an effective way of collecting data from culturally diverse youth. So what? This study recommends incorporating interactive and arts-based strategies into sexual health promotion programs for multicultural youth. It also provides guidance for health promotion practitioners evaluating an arts-based health promotion program using arts-based data collection methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issue addressed: The evaluation of health promotion training for the Western Australian (WA) Aboriginal maternal and child health (MCH) sector. Methods: Fifty-one MCH professionals from five regions in WA who attended one of three health promotion short courses in 2012-2013 were invited to complete an online survey or a telephone interview, between 4 to 17 months post-course. Respondents were asked how they had utilised the information and resources from the training and to identify the enabling factors or barriers to integrating health promotion into their work practices subsequently. Results: Overall response rate was 33%(n = 17); 94%of respondents reported they had utilised the information and resources from the course and 76% had undertaken health promotion activities since attending the course. Building contacts with other MCH providers and access to planning tools were identified as valuable components of the course. Barriers to translating knowledge into practice included financial constraints and lack of organisational support for health promotion activity. Conclusions: Health promotion training provides participants with the skills and confidence to deliver health promotion strategies in their communities. The training presents an opportunity to build health professionals' capacity to address some determinants of poor health outcomes among pregnant Aboriginal women and their babies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]