The acceptability of the female condom among substance-using women in Washington, DC

This research is based on structured interviews, semi-structured interviews , and informal firsthand observation of women residents of Washington, DC w ho used crack and/or injected drugs during the previous 30 days. The study entailed introducing these women to the female condom, exposing them to an HIV risk reduction intervention teaching them how to use it and how to nego tiate its use with their sexual partner(s). Women were tested for HIV and a sked to return one week later for their results. They were asked to try the female condom within that first week. Upon returning for their tests resul ts, ethnographers discussed with them their experiences with the female con dom. They were reinterviewed for follow-up three months later to assess cha nges in behavior from baseline as well as their longer term experiences wit h and opinions of the female condom. The data presented in this paper are b ased on the interviews conducted one week after baseline. Of particular int erest and concern to this research were: women's perceptions of the female condom prior to and subsequent to using it, women's partners' perceptions o f the female condom after being introduced to it, and potential barriers to use. In all, 131 women, mostly African-American, took part in this study, which was conducted during the winter of 1997-1998.