Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Women involved in both street-level and off-street sex work face disproportionate health and social inequities compared to the general population. While much research has focused on HIV and sexually transmitted infections STIs among sex workers, there remains a gap in evidence regarding the broader health issues faced by this population, including mental health.
Given limited evidence describing the mental health of women in sex work, our objective was to evaluate the burden and correlates of mental health diagnoses among this population in Vancouver, Canada. Participants complete interviewer-administered questionnaires semi-annually. We analyzed the lifetime burden and correlates of self-reported mental health diagnoses using bivariate and multivariable logistic regression. Among sex workers enrolled between January and February , Evidence-informed interventions tailored to sex workers that address intersections between trauma and mental health should be further explored, alongside policies to foster access to safer workspaces and health services.
Women involved in sex work face disproportionate social and health inequities compared to the general population, including high rates of violence, poor sexual health, and vulnerabilities to HIV and STIs [ 1 β 9 ]. In comparison to the growing body of research on HIV in sex work, analyses of mental health of women in sex work remain sparse and are limited to only a few studies from urban settings in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia.
Evidence from previous studies indicate that women in sex work may experience a high burden of mental illness, especially mood disorder, suicidal ideation, and post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD [ 1 β 5 , 10 β 13 ].
While some studies describe associations between mental health and a personal history of trauma, ongoing client or partner violence, and comorbid physical illnesses such as HIV and STIs [ 4 , 14 ], few studies have explored the links between structural factors and mental health among sex workers.
