AIDS Retains Stigma in Eastern Europe

After officially denying the existence of AIDS during the communist years, Romania now requires AIDS tests for people getting married or applying for jobs _ a rule activists say perpetuates discrimination. Health experts warn that infection rates in Eastern Europe will skyrocket if countries fail to adopt more pragmatic policies.

AIDS/HIV Infected Health Care Workers: Guidance on the Management of Infected Health Care Workers and Patient Notification

Key Points and Recommendations for the Management of infected health care workers.

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Catholic Children's Aid Society of Hamilton v. J.I.

The two children in question were ordered Crown wards with no access to either parent -- The mother, who was H.I.V. positive, was unable to meet her parental responsibilities with regard to the two children. Both children were ordered Crown wards with no access to the parents -- The children's aid society argued that the two children in question were in need of protection and sought an order of Crown wardship with no access to the parents -- The mother, who had come to Canada from Nigeria, was H.I.V. positive, as was the second child, E. -- The mother was facing outstanding criminal charges with regard to failing to disclose her illness to E.'s father, who had contracted the disease -- HELD: An order for Crown wardship with no access to the parents was made, as it was in the best interests of the children as it would allow them to be adopted -- The evidence overwhelmingly supported a finding that the mother did not have the ability to meet her parental responsibilities to the children and that she consistently rejected most of the assistance offered to her by the society and the staff at the S.I.S. clinic to meet the needs of the children -- The child O. was found in need of protection as she was at risk of suffering physical harm on account of her developmental stage and the mother's demonstrated lack of ability to ensure her safety even during access visits, her potential exposure to the HIV virus, as well as her past failure to follow medical advice -- Furthermore, O. was at risk from suffering emotional harm based on the mother's lack of ability or willingness to be responsive to O.'s behaviour and need for attention during access visits, and her failure to work with society and daycare staff to facilitate the child's speech and language development -- The child E. was in need of protection as he had become infected with H.I.V. as a result of the mother's deliberate actions, including her failure to obtain the recommended medical care, and E.'s ongoing need to ensure that his medications were taken regularly -- E. was also at risk of suffering emotional harm, in part because of the issues he would be facing being H.I.V. positive and the inability of the mother to provide and/or arrange the support he would inevitably require -- There was no air of reality to the mother's plan of care for the children.

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Corporate Responsibility in a World of AIDS: The Economic Case for Investing Now

Power Point Presentation

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Criminalizing Christianity: Sweden's Hate Speech Law

The logic of this prosecution is driven by the ardent determination of homosexual activists to make all criticism of homosexuality illegal. The logic of many hate crimes statutes plays right into this ideological strategy. By silencing all opposition, advocates for the normalization of homosexuality have the public square entirely to themselves, with defenders of biblical sexuality and the traditional family left without a voice and risking prosecution for any language or argument deemed offensive by the guardians of political correctness.

DaimlerChrysler SA-HIV/AIDS Workplace Programme

(Large Report-Increase download time)

Power Point Presentation concerning how Daimler-Chrysler in South Africa is dealing with HIV/AIDS in the workplace

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Depression and Thoughts of Suicide Among Middle-Aged and Older Persons Living With HIV-AIDS

Once an epidemic concentrated among the young, AIDS is increasingly affecting older adults. Of all persons in the United States who have been diagnosed as having AIDS, the proportion who were men age 45 and older cumulatively increased from 9 percent in 1995 to 21 percent in mid-1999. A similar escalation in AIDS cases was observed in women age 45 and older, who constituted 6 percent of all cases in 1995 and 16 percent in mid-1999. New HIV infection rates also suggest that the trend toward greater percentages of older adults with an AIDS diagnosis will continue; 29 percent of men and 24 percent of women newly infected with HIV in 1997 were between 35 and 44 years old (1,2). Thus more adults are becoming infected in their thirties and forties, and advances in treatments for both HIV infection and AIDS-associated conditions are increasing the longevity of those living with HIV infection. Although older adults clearly constitute a growing population of people with HIV-AIDS, little is known about their mental health needs and their ability to cope with HIV infection.

De-stigmatizing Disease

Growing up in the '90s, it's almost guaranteed that you have been offered to wear a red AIDS ribbon, a yellow Livestrong bracelet, or a pink breast cancer pin at some point in your life. It could be said that some diseases even have an era as they rise and fall in the awareness of the public eye. We've seen it in the past with polio and mumps and most recently with cancer and AIDS. However, before the public can accept the severity of these diseases and work for change, they must first overcome the built-in stigmas attached to these diseases. This can be difficult to do, especially if choice was a factor in contracting or developing the disease, which would imply that the person is partially responsible for his or her situation. Ultimately, this makes for a cause that is far less likely to generate sympathy or funding from society.

Discrimination against people with HIV and AIDS in Poland

The recent increase in HIV seroprevalence in Poland, particularly among injecting drug users, has been accompanied by widespread discrimination against people affected by HIV and AIDS. As in other countries, this discrimination may be attributed to a large extent to fear and ignorance about HIV and AIDS together with pre-existing prejudices against the people who are most commonly associated with the epidemic. In Poland extreme hostility towards drug users combined with the powerful influence of a traditional Catholic church have so far impeded effective education about HIV and AIDS and anti-discrimination strategies.

Ethical Considerations Regarding Access to Experimental Treatment and Experimentation on Human Subjects

One overall conclusion shared by everyone should be stressed at the beginning. There are interesting problems concerning fair distribution of experimental treatments (although no unanimity exists about whether persons’ interests in participating should be thought of as a right). As a practical matter, however, distribution of experimental treatment is a problem of much lesser importance than fair distribution of established treatments. This paper does not address the problem but that it is a much more important issue for political action is clear.

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Extra Pounds Can Cost Workers Big Bucks Obese women more likely to suffer wage discrimination than men

Frontline: Realities of stigma in health care settings

While the majority of health care professionals comply with ethical guidelines and do not deny care or treatment to people living with HIV (PLHIV), a disturbing number of health care professionals engage in stigmatising and discriminatory behaviour, according to studies presented at the recent XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto. Health care workers are also reported to engage in practices that contravene codes of professional ethics, including HIV testing without consent and disclosure of confidential medical information without prior permission. This was revealed by Takawira Moses, who works with Medicin Sans Frontiers (MSF) in rural Zambia.

Gendered representations of HIV/AIDS and the reproduction of hegemonic discourses on femininity in media images

In the South African context, the media has tended to seize on the most sensational moments of this focus and often reproduced (albeit inadvertently), as the academic literature itself has, problematic representations of women. The following paper draws on visual representations of HIV/AIDS and violence against women, over 5 months of the Mail and Guardian, a progressive weekly newspaper in South Africa, as a snapshot of how HIV/AIDS is currently represented, particularly with respect to women and gender relations. The pictures utilised in this presentation aim to demonstrate the way in which popular representations not only reproduce traditional constructions of women as passive, helpless victims in the realm of HIV, violence and sexual relations, but also highlight the way in which women are inadvertently stigmatised and blamed for the epidemic. Furthermore, the images illustrate the continued processes of 'othering' which also reflects racist and classist discourses in the construction of HIV/AIDS.

HIV Attitudes and Practices Among Professors in a Brazilian Dental School

Although there is considerable published research on Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), individual biases persist because of lack of information regarding HIV virus transmission. As a result, both infected patients and health care professionals suffer. The objective of this study was to determine if there is prejudice among university professors at the School of Dentistry at Araçatuba’s São Paulo State University (FOA-UNESP) concerning HIV-positive patients or HIV-positive health care professionals. Out of the seventy-seven professors who responded to the questionnaire, 62.3 percent (forty-eight) stated that they advise their students not to refuse to treat a patient with HIV. Although 96.2 percent (fifty-two) of the fifty-four professors who treat patients have reported that they treat patients who are HIV-positive, only 65.3 percent of them were aware of infection control precautions, and only 32.7 percent reported that they would treat an HIV-positive patient like any other patient. There is also prejudice regarding HIV-positive professionals because only 48.1 percent (thirty-seven) of the professors responded that they would be willing to be treated by an infected professional. It can be concluded that there is prejudice among some of the FOA-UNESP university professors regarding individuals who are HIV-positive.

HIV Is Treatable, It's the Stigma That's Fatal

The murder in June of Vivian Kavuma in Uganda by her lover after she disclosed that she was infected with HIV…The brutal stabbing with a pitchfork of 15-year-old Isaiah Gakuyo last April in Kenya by his uncle simply because the orphan was HIV-positive. There were numerous witnesses to the attack, but none intervened…The murder of in June 2005 human rights activist Octavio Acuña Rubio in a condom shop he owned in Mexico.

HIV/AIDS The Untold Story

AIDS has an uncanny knack for attacking people the dominant society considers "undesirables": gays, injection drug users (IDUs), prisoners, and people of color. The commonly cited US statistic that African Americans have twice the AIDS rate as white Americans understates the problem because it is based on the total number of cases since 1981. While white gay men constituted the large majority of cases in the early days, by  the early 1990s the rate of  new cases among Latinos was 2.5 times higher than among whites, and the black/ white ratio was even starker at 5-1 for men and 15-1 for women. By 1993, AIDS had become the leading cause of death among African Americans between the ages of 25 and 44. Internationally, the racial disparity is even worse: About 80 percent of  the world's 9 million AIDS deaths through 1995 have occurred in Africa, where 2 million children have already  been orphaned.

Incarcerated Women, HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C: Challenges Inside the Walls and Beyond

There is no doubt or disagreement that being an incarcerated woman with HIV/ AIDS and/or Hepatitis C is difficult. But how is being an incarcerated woman with these diseases different from being a man in a similar situation? The answer, say prison and jail healthcare providers, advocates, and formerly incarcerated women: many things are the same, and a few are very different.

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Is the AIDS epidemic having an impact on the coping behaviour and health status of the elderly? Evidence from Northwestern Tanzania

This paper is based on a research project entitled, “The economic impact of fatal adult illness due to AIDS and other causes in sub-Saharan Africa”, sponsored by the World Bank, USAID and Danida. We are grateful to UNAIDS—particularly Anita Alban—for the financial support for this paper, to Paurvi Bhatt, Deon Filmer, Robert Hecht, John Knodel, Sukhontha Kongsin and John Stover, for comments on an earlier draft, and to Anna Marie Marañon for expert assistance in producing the paper with all of the figures intact. Our use of the term ‘elderly’ in this paper to describe adults over the age of 50 is purely for convenience; we wish to affirm that none of our friends, colleagues or co-investigators over 50 could in any way be described as elderly. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the World Bank or its members.

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Knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of maritime college students concerning HIV/AIDS

Research findings show good knowledge levels about HIV and AIDS. The general level of awareness regarding HIV/AIDS transmission and prevention has been satisfactory among maritime college students included in the study. However, there are a number of misconceptions and myths such as the one that HIV infection can be cured by anti-retroviral drug treatment. These misconceptions and myths should be corrected so that we will be able to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS. The results can be used in planning and implementing health education for maritime students.

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Medical Experimentation

The United States has a long history of human medical experimentation. As early as 1900, an American doctor conducting research in the Philippines was found guilty of infecting prisoners with the Plague and Beriberi.1 Such incidents have outraged and shocked many Americans, but they have continued to occur nevertheless. There have
been some interesting developments in human medical experimentation this century, most of them referring to the idea of informed consent, which has its roots in the Nuremberg Code.

Myth: There is no war between science and Christianity.

The Church has never been on the cutting edge of science -- on the contrary, it has been the one persecuting scientists. The list of those who earned the wrath of the Church reads like a Who's Who of Science: Copernicus, Bruno, Galileo, Descartes, Newton, Halley, Darwin, Hubble, even Bertrand Russell. The Church has also been on the wrong side of the social sciences for over 1,500 years, actively promoting slavery, anti-Semitism, the torture and murder of women as witches, sexual repression, censorship and the Inquisition, Crusades and other aggressive wars, and capital punishment for misdemeanors. This has given rise to a Christian field called apologetics, which attempts to defend the Church's errors, even claiming that science and Christianity are compatible friends, not enemies. But the atrocities and scientific errors were too profound, and stretched on for too many millennia, to be defended in any reasonable manner.

Neglected Diseases and Poverty in “The Other America”: The Greatest Health Disparity in the United States?

Nigeria: New Study Reveals Discrimination by Health Professionals Against People Living with HIV/AIDS is Fueled by Fear of Infection, Lack of Protection

While the majority of Nigerian health care professionals comply with ethical obligations and do not deny care or treatment to People Living With AIDS (PLWA), a disturbing number of health care professionals engage in discriminatory behavior toward treatment and care of PLWA, according to a new study released today by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR). Health care professionals also reported engaging in practices that are against international and Nigerian codes of professional ethics including testing without consent and disclosure of confidential medical information without permission.

Perceptions of HIV/AIDS and caring for people with terminal AIDS in southern Thailand

This study presents data collected from village-based ethnographic research conducted in southern Thailand in 1995-1996, and focuses on perceptions of HIV/AIDS infection, patients with AIDS and theft provision of care. Individual interviews were conducted with 300 village women. These data were supplemented by data from 14 focus group discussions involving 100 participants, both men and women, randomly selected from six villages in Hatyai district, Songkla Province, Thailand. In addition, 23 people with HIV/AIDS and their caregivers participated in subsequent in-depth interviews. Participants generally obtained theft information about HIV/AIDS from television and radio, and the information they obtained was generally negative. AIDS was perceived as a disease associated with dirt, danger and death, although it was also considered to be a disease of karma (rok khong khon mee kam) and a 'woman's disease' (rok phuying) associated with prostitution. Few women perceived themselves to be at risk of infection because they 'trusted' their husbands to be faithful. There were some differences in attitudes towards caring for AIDS patients among people who lived in semi-urban and rural areas, and with areas which had not yet experienced AIDS among community members. Focus group discussions clarified issues related to the illness and patterns of care giving among men and women. Areas of misperception and confusion were identified and will be used for interventions.

Prostitution and Slavery in Asia: Does the Market Set the Captives Free?

I have argued for the importance of contextualizing and distinguishing modern forms of sex work in Asia, from earlier forms. I have suggested that sex tourism corresponds to Euro-American colonial forms of slavery, which dealt in humans as nonhuman commodities, while precolonial Asians in all of their diversity and difference, preponderantly treated their slaves as part of their living and related societal body. Policymakers of international lending bodies and local governments, among others, have “rationalized” and perpetuated the sex tourism industry in Asia by “saying” that it has always existed there. But, the kind of sexuality that can be bought and sold as a commodity on the market, for example, wherein “aman can turn his desire into a thing,” is not the same kind of sexuality that was integral to the social reproduction of Asian social formations.

PSYCHIATRIC STIGMA follows you everywhere you go for the rest of your life

A problem you should think about before consulting a mental health professional, or encouraging someone else to do so, is the stigma of having received the so-called therapy.  If you seek counseling or "therapy" from a psychiatrist or psychologist, how are you going to answer questions on job applications, applications for occupational or professional licenses, a driver's license, applications for health or life insurance, and school and college applications, such as "Have you ever had psychiatric or psychological therapy?" When you apply for a job or occupational license or a driver's license or apply for an insurance policy or admission to an educational program you will often be required to answer this or a similar question.  When you answer such questions candidly and admit having received psychiatric or psychological "help", the result often will be loss of important opportunities

Race, Ethnicity and Culture Psychological Variables in the Ethiology of Deviant Behavior

The terms race, ethnicity and culture have no generally agreed upon definitions.  The term deviance, does.  There is a growing interest in the interaction between these four terms perhaps as a result of the biogenetic, psychiatric and psychological studies being conducted to identify a possible link between criminality and genetics, physiology, mental disorders, personality and moral development. This writing presents a general overview of deviance and how it is influenced by such elements as race, ethnicity, culture and socioeconomic status.

Religion’s Role in the Expansion of AIDS

Religious constraints on reporting HIV/AIDS in Nigeria

In virtually every society, religion wields a powerful and tremendous influence in the lives of the populace. Many of the rules and regulations that guide and determine the laws of the land and shape ideologies and life styles emanate from prevalent religious beliefs and practices. This is especially true of Nigeria, where religion has become a dominant part of the people’s social life.

Response of religious groups to HIV/AIDS as a sexually transmitted infection in Trinidad

HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination are significant determinants of HIV transmission in the Caribbean island nation of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T), where the adult HIV/AIDS prevalence is 2.5%. T&T is a spiritually-aware society and over 104 religious groups are represented. This religious diversity creates a complex social environment for the transmission of a sexually transmitted infection like HIV/AIDS. Religious leaders are esteemed in T&T's society and may use their position and frequent interactions with the public to promote HIV/AIDS awareness, fight stigma and discrimination, and exercise compassion for people living with HIV/AIDS (PWHA). Some religious groups have initiated HIV/AIDS education programs within their membership, but previous studies suggest that HIV/AIDS remains a stigmatized infection in many religious organizations. The present study investigates how the perception of HIV/AIDS as a sexually transmitted infection impacts religious representatives' incentives to respond to HIV/AIDS in their congregations and communities. In correlation, the study explores how the experiences of PWHA in religious gatherings impact healing and coping with HIV/AIDS.

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL FACTORS AFFECTING THE HIV EPIDEMIC

The complexity of the HIV/AIDS epidemic stems from its links with all aspects of society and culture. Social and cultural factors affect not only viral transmission, but also the success of prevention strategies and the compassion with which people living with the virus are treated. A clear understanding of those factors therefore becomes a point of departure for planning the control of the epidemic.

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Socio-economic Impact of HIV/AIDS on People Living With HIV/AIDS and their Families

The deteriorating economic impact on the PLWHA is also shocking, said Mr Rai. “We will do a mistake if we don’t act now. India has 4.58 million people living with HIV/AIDS by 2002. The number is increasing and now we are about 10% of the global HIV population. Six states are high prevalence states. He said, "to my mind, the report gives us one message very clearly and that is HIV/AIDS is a real threat, it has started showing adverse effects in India. We shall make mistake if we don’t take these findings seriously and strengthen our response to HIV/AIDS". The epidemic is becoming a serious problem for the country. We need to learn from the Sub Sahara African countries where most of the younger generation is affected by the disease,” said Mr Rai.

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Spotlight: Reducing stigma and discrimination: Successful examples from the health care sector in Asia

There is no shortage of studies demonstrating that stigma and discrimination is common in health care settings in Asia. Ask anyone living with HIV where they experience the most discrimination based on their serostatus, their occupation as a sex worker, or their injecting drug use: They will often reply that health workers are the ones that make them feel the worst. Stories of segregation in wards, refusal of care, and disclosure of status are common in the region.

Stigma of Suicide and Mental Illness

A cold silence is one thing all suicide survivors will tell you they have encountered. There may be many reasons for this. Immediately after Paul's death, I mailed a newsletter to friends and relatives about research on suicide prevention. Most said nothing but one friend said they did not want their son to read it because it might give him ideas. I thought that was the stupidest thing I had heard. How would reading about the pain and suffering of another person and their struggle with schizophrenia cause someone to make a decision to take their life? Do others out there feel that reading about a suicide might cause someone to decide to do it?

Stigma stops HIV disclosure

“We know that a substantial (but unknown) number of stable sexual relationships are between partners where one is HIV positive, but does not tell the other partner,” Dr Simbayi said. “Stigma is a very real part of these people's lives. Disclosing one's HIV status can be risky.”  “For example, our study in South Africa showed that 40% of people living with HIV/Aids had experienced discrimination and one in five had lost their homes or their jobs because of their HIV status.”

The Ethics of AIDS Care

The readers of this journal are acutely aware of the expanding research data on the most effective treatment regimens for HIV/AIDS, as well as the medical and socioeconomic dimensions of the formularies that often govern access to these regimens, their costs, and the characteristics of the population affected. This article will, therefore, focus on the question of what is appropriate medical care for people with HIV disease and the ethical principles involved in providing drugs to the medically indigent for such appropriate medical care. An opinion concerning the ethical issues that the problem raises is given. Then suggestions are made to solve the problem in an ethically acceptable way.

The Stigma of Being HIV-Positive in Africa

Fear of stigma can cause pregnant women to avoid HIV testing, the first step in reducing mother-to-child transmission. It may force mothers to expose babies to HIV infection through breast-feeding because the mothers do not want to arouse suspicion of their HIV status by using alternative feeding methods. Fear of stigma, and the resulting denial, may even inhibit condom use in HIV discordant couples. Further evidence of how stigma leads to denial is the way in which newspaper obituaries avoid mentioning HIV/AIDS as a cause of death.

Too Big to Work? Obesity Screening Called Unfair

A hulking but healthy furniture mover and train aficionado says there's no good reason he can't work for a railroad company. Some physicians and activists would agree. In a country obsessed with dieting and an "epidemic" of obesity, will "weight discrimination" soon rock the work place?

Understanding and challenging HIV stigma Toolkit for action

(Large Report-increase download time)

HIV stigma is rooted in both fear and ignorance. Research has shown that everyone has some information about HIV and AIDS, but few have enough information to overcome irrational fears associated with HIV and its transmission. Most people know that HIV can be transmitted through sex, but many people still have fears about risk through non-sexual, casual contact. For instance, they may avoid a fellow bus passenger who is coughing and suspected to be HIV positive for fear of ‘breathing in the virus’, or they may be fearful of cleaning the bed sheets of someone who is sick at home. This fear of casual contact will often lead to isolation and segregation, and PLHIV (or suspected to be living with HIV) may be given separate plates and cups, a separate room and so on.

Module A

Module B & C

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Women’s sexual control within conjugal union: Implications for HIV/AIDS infection and control in a metropolitan city

This study attempts to examine the extent to which women have control over their sexuality within marriage and its implication for the spread of HIV/AIDS. The survey was carried out in metropolitan Lagos. The study shows that women have some control over their sexuality especially during certain occasions such as during menstruation, breastfeeding, pregnancy and when they are sick. However, only few women could negotiate with their husbands especially by insisting on safe sexual practices. The study therefore shows that women need to be educated on the need for safer sex practices, especially in this era of HIV/AIDS. They should also be economically empowered so as to practice safer sex. Again, men should be educated on the safer sex practices in other to control the spread of HIV/AIDS.

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