Unique Challenges to Preventing Perinatal HIV Transmission Among Hispanic Women in California: Results of A Needs Assessment

Abstract

To identify rates and factors associated with timely prenatal care (PNC) initiation, HIV test counseling, test offering, and test offer acceptance, we conducted a semistructured survey of a convenience sample of pregnant/recently delivered Hispanic women (n=453, 418 with analyzable data) in four California counties in 2000. Only 68.4% and 43.5% of Hispanic women reported receiving an HIV test offer and counseling, respectively, though 88.8% of those offered a test accepted. After controlling for the effects of age, education, years lived in the United States, health insurance coverage, delivery status, and parity, Hispanic women who initiated prenatal care in the first trimester were 1.7 times more likely to be offered an HIV test and almost 3 times more likely to receive counseling than women with a later prenatal care start or no prenatal care. Factors associated with timely PNC initiation on multivariate analysis were private/HMO insurance (OR=10.7, p < .001), Medi-Cal insurance (OR = 4.32, p < .001), being 25-30 years old (OR = 3.0, p = .008), and completion of high school (OR = 2.07, p = .01). Key opportunities to prevent perinatal HIV transmission are being lost for Hispanic women in California. Interventions to increase timely PNC initiation, and to improve test offering by health care providers, may help to improve counseling and testing rates for this population.