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Joyceline Ntoh Yuh
University of Oldenburg, Germany
Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment
An estimate of 80,000 people are living with HIV in Germany with 4,400 sero-positive persons in the State of Lower Saxony which counts amongst the high HIV prevalence states in Germany. HIV is now classified as a chronic disease, but many sexually active people do not still know their HIV status. In so doing, HIV-related stigma stands as a major barrier in seeking VCT especially within African communities. Gender and culture play a significant part in the aftermath of the infection. Women are more likely to be blamed for the transmission of HIV compared to men. All these complicate the disclosure of infection and prevention of HIV transmission. HIV prevention efforts are slowed down by societal and cultural factors that largely lead to stigmatization of infected individuals. The current research therefore, examines the sociocultural construction of HIV stigma and dilemmas as African-migrant Women struggle to cope with the challenges posed by HIV/AIDS in their day to day lives. The social context of HIV-related stigma is reflected in negative behaviors including discrimination, denial, secrecy and self-blame. Most HIV infections are through heterosexual transmission, a mode of transmission closely linked to promiscuity and the resultant HIV-related stigma. The complexity surrounding HIV-related stigma cannot be ignored considering the fact that, it is layered amongst other stigmas such as gender and promiscuity (Skinner & Mfecane, 2004). Intersectionality is an ideal framework for analyzing complex health inequalities that occurs among HIVinfected subgroups especially African Women whose experiences are different from that of men. Multiple factors often precipitate stigmatization experiences and their social identities at the individual level such as being female, ethnic minority, low economic status which interlocks with oppressive forces at the macro level e.g. classism or sexism which creates social injustice. It is vital to examine the underlying aspects creating and re-enforcing HIV-related stigma in order to design culturally sensitive interventions. Thus, redefining HIV/AIDS from the social perspective during it's outbreak which initially created stigma, needs to be addressed especially by medical personnels, social workers and Religious leaders in order to eradicate it. The qualitative study had a convenient sample of six participants based on the fact that, most women declined to participate due to stigma and also not being comfortable having an African researcher involved. The lived experiences of participants were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis approach, to gain a better understanding of their perspectives in its own term, than simply focusing on theoretical underpinnings. The study shows how the psychological impact of HIV continues to affect sero-positive women negatively in living fulfilled lives with other related anxieties, impacting on their overall wellbeing.
E-mail: n_joyce192002@yahoo.com
