Commercial sex between men: A prospective diary-based study

This paper describes the results of a self-reporting dairy completed by 186 male sex workers (MSWs) over a 2-week period in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melb ourne, Australia. The dairy was completed following each commercial sex enc ounter by the MSW. The results reveal that MSWs reported 2088 commercial se x encounters during the study period, with an average of 11.2 encounters pe r MSW. The majority of sex encounters took place in either the client's or the MSW's residence, with significant variations by city. The average sexua l encounter lasted 70 minutes, and comprised two sexual acts, masturbation and oral sex. Condom use was reported in 67.4% of all the encounters. Using the AIDS Council safe-sex classification system, the majority of the comme rcial sex encounters fell in the "safer sex" category; however, there were significant differences by source of clients and place of the encounter. Us e of drugs and alcohol reveal interesting patterns: Clients were more likel y to use alcohol, while MSWs had significant differences of usage of the di fferent drugs. This study demonstrates that the majority of MSWs are offeri ng and practicing safe sex behaviours, however, MSWs working in the street setting are still likely to be practicing unsafe sex. Male sex work is beco ming an organised business and this provides opportunities to implement fur ther public health interventions.