NCJ Number
211443
Journal
Journal of Ethnicity in Substance Abuse Volume: 4 Issue: 1 Dated: 2005 Pages: 53-75
Date Published
2005
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This study explored the perceptions and experiences of barriers to substance abuse and HIV services among a sample of African-American women who used crack cocaine.
Abstract
HIV infection disproportionately impacts African-American women despite the availability of substance abuse treatment services and HIV prevention programming. Many critics have pointed out that while HIV is preventable by changing high-risk behaviors, the prevention and treatment programs that address these issues are often inaccessible to the populations that need them the most. While previous research has identified the barriers to services that African-American women who use crack cocaine face, the unique environmental context and specific stressors that directly impact this population’s health outcomes deserves further study. The current study convened 11 focus groups with 89 African-American women who used crack cocaine in order to explore their HIV risk behaviors, their experiences accessing substance abuse and HIV services, and their perceptions of the services they needed and the barriers they faced in accessing them. Results indicated the women faced both structural and individual level barriers to the receipt of substance abuse services and, to a lesser extent, HIV-related services. Themes that emerged in the focus groups included fear of the results of seeking services, such as losing custody of children, and feelings of powerlessness within a non-responsive service system. Future research should expand upon these exploratory findings with larger sample sizes and quantitative analyses. Table, references