Nontraditional employees: Indigenous outreach workers employed as AIDS educators for street addicts

Abstract

This descriptive study examined issues in the employment of indigenous outreach workers (OWs) hired to deliver AIDS risk-reduction messages to street addicts who were not in treatment. Twenty-six projects responded to a mailed questionnaire. These projects were part of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) funded National AIDS Demonstration Research (NADR) projects. Fifty-eight percent of the OWs hired were recovering addicts with an average of just over 2 years in recovery. Out of a total of 395 OWs hired, 61% left prior to the conclusion of the 3-year project. Of those who left, 62% left employment within the first year. The study recognizes that OWs are “nontraditional” employees, and suggestions are given for further study and to increase retention.