A four-country study was conducted to provide information on the status of stigma and discrimination (SAD) among Men who have Sex with Men (MSM) and Transgender (TG) persons in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Timor Leste. Based on the Indicators described in the Stigma and Discrimination Index Questionnaire, this study focused on their experiences with local health care workers and in various health care settings such as clinics, health centres and hospitals. A total of 2,412 respondents participated with 1,000 representatives from Indonesia. This abstract focuses on the initial findings of the SADS-HCS-2015 in Indonesia.

Field surveys were conducted by trained members of 18 community based organisations from across Indonesia. A 12-question paper-based or electronic questionnaires were employed to reach out to MSM and TG clients of health clinics and hospitals (both private and public) using convenience sampling. Stigma and discrimination were described in terms of the respondents’ self-reported perception of: 1. Refusal of health care services, 2. Physical maltreatment, 3. Verbal maltreatment and 4. Provision of health care service below standards. Results indicate that Verbal Maltreatment was the most common experience (n = 50) followed by Provision of health service below standards (n = 34), Refused access to health care services (n = 6) and Physical Maltreatment (n = 5). Combined, this is roughly less than 0.1% of the respondents. 5.2% of the respondents said that their personal experience of stigma and discrimination is still continuing.

The Preliminary SADS results for Indonesia reflect a very low level of SAD as experienced by MSM and TG community members. Although packets of SADs, are still being reported, the data suggest an increasing awareness of health care service providers on the concern of SAD and perhaps the effectiveness of government and local NGO-led interventions to significantly decrease if not totally eradicate stigma and discrimination in its many forms.

Disclosure of interest The study was supported by the Global Fund through a regional Grant to the ISEAN Hivos Program. The main author has no other affiliations aside from the ISEAN Hivos Program.