Women drug abuse in Europe : Gender identity - Irefrea

For whom:Foreign women who prostitute themselves on the street.Intervention methods:The programme foresees two weekly outings of the team (usually an educator and amediator) with the bus of “Unità di Strada” to reach/find the prostitutes and to distributeinformative material in their own language amongst them, also pharmaceutical products(vaginal jelly and condoms). They offer basic advice regarding illnesses and the socialsanitaryservices offered by the city. There is the possibility of being accompanied to theservices, the aim being to put them in touch with the structures only with their knowledge.Team:3 professional educators, 2 cultural mediators.Result evaluation:Contact with 90% of the prostitutes of which 50% turned spontaneously to the Clinicand Social Services, the others were accompanied.A workshop took place, thematically based on the prevention and cure of sexuallytransmitted diseases in collaboration with a doctor from the clinic. The satisfying resultallowed the planning of further meetings. One of the limits is, however, the lack ofcultural mediators who would make it easier to meet the people.Support network:Comitato per i Diritti Civili, Centro Antiviolenza, USL, Servizi per minori del Comune,ECAP (Centro Formazione Personale), Centro Ascolto AIDS dell’ARCI.Innovative aspects:The contact on the street helps develop an important link with the city and cancontribute to a new start for different lives.The presence of cultural mediators represents a new modality of relating to thephenomena of prostitution, allowing a contact that is more oriented towards listening.4 Sanitary prevention programmeLocation:Città di BolognaComune di BolognaBolognaAims:Prevention of sexually transmitted diseases using the Unità di Strada (Street unit)For whom:Prostitutes and transsexuals.Intervention methods:The operators work in pairs – one local together with a multicultural operator. Togetherthey approach the women. The majority of the prostitutes are foreigners (drug addictionwas found in only one case); the service operates from 22 to 2.88