Social Determinants of Health Care Access Among Sex Industry Workers in Canada

Drawing on closed and open-ended interview data (n=79), this paper explores the health care experiences of a purposive sample of sex industry workers in a medium-sized metropolitan area of British Columbia, Canada. The respondents reported high average health care utilization and many reported satisfactory access to health care, including a positive relationship with a regular health provider. However, several respondents reported feeling intimidated and shamed in health care settings (felt stigma) and many choose to withhold information relevant to their health care due to fear of discrimination (enacted stigma) by health professionals.