Clinical trial NCT02807259: Reducing Vulnerability in the Intimate Partnerships of Female Sex Workers Sex Workers
Official title: Evaluation of Samvedana Plus: An Intervention With Female Sex Workers (FSWs) and Their Intimate Partners to Reduce Partner Violence and Increase Consistent Condom Use Within Intimate Relationships
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Violence
Sexual Behaviour
HIV
Lead sponsor: Karnataka Health Promotion Trust
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
name: University of Manitoba
First posted: 2016-06-21
Enrollment: 809
Sex: FEMALE
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose: PREVENTION

Brief summary: Female sex workers (FSWs) frequently experience violence from their intimate partners (non-paying lovers), which compromises their health and increases their the risk of infection with HIV or other sexually transmitted infections. Samdevena Plus is a complex multi-level intervention that works with FSWs, their intimate partners, the sex worker community and the general population. The intervention aims to reduce partner violence and increase consistent condom use within these relationships.

The intervention consists of: (i) couples counselling sessions between FSWs and their intimate partners; (ii) separate group work among FSWs and intimate partners to increase self-esteem and encourage reflection about violence; (iii) strengthening supportive crisis management systems that address domestic and sex worker violence; (iv) training male 'champions' to encourage action against violence; and (v) training media to promote informed discussions about violence and HIV risk.The program involves changing perceptions on acceptability of physical violence as a form of discipline, challenging assumptions that give men authority over women, and working with men and women to encourage new relationship models based on equality and respect. The intervention will reach 800 FSWs and their intimate partners living in 47 villages in north Karnataka, India. The evaluation uses a cluster-randomized control trial design that introduces the intervention into half of villages for the first 24 months and the remaining half receive the intervention thereafter. The primary outcomes of the trial are: the proportion of FSWs who report: i) consistent condom use in their intimate relationship; and ii) experiencing partner violence within the past 6 months.

Detailed description: Female sex workers (FSWs) are at increased risk of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI) compared to women in the general population, and frequently experience violence in their working and domestic lives from a variety of perpetrators, which can enhance this risk. While progress has been made in addressing violence by police and clients, little work has been done to understand and prevent violence by intimate partners (IPs) among FSW populations.

Samvedana Plus is a multi-level intervention programme that works with FSWs, their IPs, the sex worker community, and the general population, and aims to reduce violence and increase consistent condom use within these 'intimate' relationships. The programme involves shifting norms around the acceptability of beating as a form of discipline, challenging gender roles that give men authority over women, and working with men and women to encourage new relationship models based on gender equity and respect. The programme will aim to cover 800 FSWs and their IPs living in 47 villages in Bagalkot district, northern Karnataka. The study is designed to assess three primary outcomes: the proportion of FSWs who report: (i) any physical or sexual partner violence; (ii) severe/moderate physical or sexual partner violence in the last 6 months; and iii) consistent condom use in their intimate relationship. The evaluation will employ a cluster-randomised controlled trial design, with 50% of the village clusters (n=24) randomly selected to receive the intervention for the first 24 months and the remaining 50% (n=23) receiving the intervention thereafter. Statisticians will be blinded to treatment arm allocation. The evaluation will use an adjusted, individual-level intention to treat analysis, comparing outcomes in intervention and control villages at endline (24 months) using a mixed effects logistic model. We will adjust for confounders in two ways: i) outcome variables are adjusted for at a cluster level using the mean baseline summaries; ii) other variables will be adjusted for an at an individual level using endline data. We will include all women survey at endline. We will also report cluster-level summaries by trial arm for each primary and secondary outcome to double check our analyses. The evaluation design will involve quantitative and qualitative assessments with (i) all FSWs who report an IP (ii) IPs; and process/ implementation monitoring.

This is an innovative intervention programme that aims to address violence by IPs as part of HIV prevention programming with FSWs. Reducing violence is expected to reduce vulnerability to HIV acquisition, and help women to work and live without fear of violence.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Female Sex Workers who engage in commercial sex and who currently have an intimate partner or have had an intimate partner in the last 6 months, living in any of the 47 villages.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Female sex workers aged younger than 18 years, who do not have an intimate partner or have not had one in the last 6 months, or who live outside of the villages.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Intimate Partner Violence
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
measure: Severe Intimate Partner Violence
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
measure: Condom Use
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Changes in Acceptance of Violence
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
measure: Change in Disclosure of Violence From Intimate Partners
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
measure: Changes in Self-efficacy
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
measure: Changes in Solidarity Among FSWs Around Violence
timeFrame: 27 months after implementing the intervention
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Bengaluru
country: India
facility: Karnataka Health Promotion Trust
state: Karnataka
Study officials:
affiliation: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
name: Lori Heise
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Javalkar P, Platt L, Prakash R, Beattie TS, Collumbien M, Gafos M, Ramanaik S, Davey C, Jewkes R, Watts C, Bhattacharjee P, Thalinja R, Dl K, Isac S, Heise L. Effectiveness of a multilevel intervention to reduce violence and increase condom use in intimate partnerships among female sex workers: cluster randomised controlled trial in Karnataka, India. BMJ Glob Health. 2019 Nov 6;4(6):e001546. doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2019-001546. eCollection 2019.
citation: Javalkar P, Platt L, Prakash R, Beattie T, Bhattacharjee P, Thalinja R, L KD, Sangha CATM, Ramanaik S, Collumbien M, Davey C, Moses S, Jewkes R, Isac S, Heise L. What determines violence among female sex workers in an intimate partner relationship? Findings from North Karnataka, south India. BMC Public Health. 2019 Mar 29;19(1):350. doi: 10.1186/s12889-019-6673-9.
citation: Beattie TS, Isac S, Bhattacharjee P, Javalkar P, Davey C, Raghavendra T, Nair S, Ramanaik S, Kavitha DL, Blanchard JF, Watts C, Collumbien M, Moses S, Heise L. Reducing violence and increasing condom use in the intimate partnerships of female sex workers: study protocol for Samvedana Plus, a cluster randomised controlled trial in Karnataka state, south India. BMC Public Health. 2016 Jul 29;16:660. doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-3356-7.