Health and Migration Trajectories of Housekeepers in Bamako: Situation and Acceptability of a Community-based Offer of Sexual Health Services

In Mali, migration from rural zones is a cultural phenomenon existing since 1970. During the dry season (9 months), an important number of young women leave their villages and migrate towards urban zones to seek for a job. In Bamako, the estimated number of housekeepers is 100 000 coming from rural regions and aged between 11 and 19 years. The current healthcare offer seems to be non-adapted to their particularities.

This is a community-based research constructed on the basis of the activities of two NGOs in Mali: ADDAD (association for the defense of the rights of Housekeepers and domestic helpers ) and ARCAD Santé PLUS (the main NGO for healthcare access for HIV, hepatitis, and sexual health services). The research is conducted by the SanteRCom team in the UMR1252 SESSTIM research unit.

The main objective of this observational study is to study the knowledge, beliefs, behaviors and practices in terms of health in general, and sexual health in particular; and to assess the acceptability of an offer of community-based prevention and health services provided by ARCAD Santé PLUS integrated in the activities of ADDAD. The integrating of community-based healthcare offer in a familiar and reassuring framework, such as that of ADDAD, should promote access to health services among housekeepers.

The research is organized in 3 stages:

1. Preliminary qualitative survey based on focus group discussions. Allowing the identification of the housekeepers' needs in terms of prevention and healthcare services; and the behavioral particularities of the housekeepers community. It is planned to conduct 7 focus groups including between 42 and 56 housekeepers.
2. Communication and awareness campaigns in the regions of origin of housekeepers. Campaigns will be constructed on the basis of the results obtained from the preliminary qualitative survey.
3. Communication and awareness campaigns in Bamako; community-based activities for housekeepers will be organized 3 times per week during 5 months by the NGO ADDAD. Activities will include the community-based offer of prevention and healthcare services provided by the NGO ARCAD Santé PLUS, i.e. the novelty in the ADDAD's activities. A quantitative and qualitative surveys will be conducted over 5 months with participants recruited during the community-based activities. It is expected to enroll at least 1134 housekeepers, and to conduct a maximum of 25 individual interviews with selected housekeepers.