To what extend is stigma the most

dangerous aspect of HIV/AIDS?

AIDS” stands for Acquired

Immunodeficiency Syndrome

AIDS is the final stage of

HIV infection, and

noteveryone who has

HIV advances to this

stage. People at this

stage of HIV disease

have badly damaged

immune systems, which

put them at risk

for opportunisticinfections.

• HIV is a deadly disease that many

people fear.

• Adults in the U.S. still wrongly

believe HIVcould pass through

casual contact (sharing a

drinking glass or eat together).

This greatly increases their fear

about being near to be people

living with HIV.

• Some people believe that having

HIV/AIDS is the punishment for

their faults. For example, injecting

drugs, bad sex.

Stigma is when people have

negative beliefs, views or

attitudes about individuals

that belong to a certain

group. Often the result of

stigma is discrimination.

HIV/AIDS people get

discrimination from other

people.

Social stigma

Isolated from community.

Physical stigma

Isolated, shunned, abandoned.

Separate livingspace, eatingutensils.

Verbal stigma

Gossip, taunting, scolding.

Institutionalized stigma

Barred from jobs, scholarships, visas

Denial of health services.

• The number of new HIV infections

has declined globally by 21% since

the estimated peak of the

epidemic in 1997.

• 2.3 million people were newly

infected with HIV worldwide in 2012.

• In some parts of the world

(particularly within Sub-Saharan

Africa) between 15-28% of the

population are living with HIV

Due to the lack of knowledge

and education, people think

that HIV/AIDS can transmits

through air or just by touching.

Some people know how

HIV/AIDS is transmitted but

they are lacked of

confidence about how HIV

is not transmitted.

Many people think that HIV

person should feel ashamed

about themselves because

it’s their fault that they get

HIV infected.

That is why HIV people afraid

of staying near to everybody. Also, once they get infected

and nobody is there to

support them then they don’t want to live any longer.

• The people who has fear

on HIVdoes not think and

aware of the seriousness

of the impacts that the

stigma put onto people

living with HIV and also

the society.

When a person has HIV, it is way

harder for he/she to get a job.

Or even though he/she did

have a job, chances are

he/she may be asked to leave.

The reasons being could be:

•Redundancy (the company

might say that the job is no

longer available)

• To ensure the safeness for

other workers and customer,

HIV person cannot be recruited

or keep working.

… An unemployed person is the one who does not have any

income. This leads to the loss of livelihood, which means loss of

securing the necessities of life. They can no longer supply for

themselves, not to mention their family.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=f58I_vP3kxU ( Website )

The person with HIV was

denied even though he has

the same profile as the other

person.

Ma

rria

ge

Ch

ildb

ea

rin

g

An HIV person should

whether get married

with another HIV person

or stay single. This is

necessary to reduce the

number of infected

people through intimate

relationship.

Even though there are ways to prevent the child from getting infected, women with HIV are encouraged to not being pregnant. They do not want to risk because there are still chances that the child may haveHIV.

Although people in the healthcare system (doctors, nurse,…)

are the one who understand the most aboutHIV/AIDS, some of

them still show discriminate attitude. They afraid that they will

be infected when they treatHIVpatients (surgery, injection,…)

and it will affect their reputation. People with HIV may be

turned away from hospitals.

Example

There was a case in Beijing, China. A man wanted to

remove the tumor in his liver but no hospital agreed to do

the operation.

In China, hospitals routinely reject people with HIV for

surgery out of fear of exposure to the virus or harm to their

reputations.

"In my hometown, not a single hospital is willing to operate on people infected with HIV, this is not

discrimination by one single person but by an entire

country” said the man.

A HIV/AIDS person may not only denied by the society but also from within the family. They may feel afraid or concern to live with a HIV person.

A young woman in Uganda

contracted HIV/AIDS and

faced stigma from everyone

in her lives, including her

family.

Her family members emphasized

that she must only use her own

plates, cups, soap, basin etc. She

also had to drop out of her high

school since her father claimed

that he would not spend his money on a “moving corpse.” After one

year, as if the isolation and

rejection were not enough of a

punishment, her father expelled her

from his home, claiming that if she

remained, her young siblings would

follow her footsteps and get AIDS

too.

HIV/AIDS – infected people feel depressed not simply

because they know that they

cannot live long. They also

have to suffer the pain of

feeling worthless because

they cannot do anything for

their family or the society.

The survey of more than 2,000 HIV-

infected people in a dozen countries

reveals that in the U.S., 42% of people

with the virus feel isolated because of

their infection, compared to 37%

worldwide. And 42% of people with HIV

in the U.S. report feeling depressed.

Some people believe that everyone has HIV because of wrong behaviour (drugs, bas sex,...)

Effects on the society

More likely to transmit

to others

The presence of stigma and fear of experiencing its have affected people’s willingness to find treatment. Oftenly, they will feel uncomfortable when asking for help because they have HIV.

Their illness will get worse=> risk for the society

As mentioned, the ignorance and

discrimination scare HIV/AIDS people,

push them to avoid testing and

treatments.

Accordingly, they put the whole society

into the risk of getting infected.

Example in

Uganda

Due to avoiding treatments and denied to be treated, HIV

become worse and turn into AIDS (last phase of HIV). At this

time, people die a lot more easily.

The more HIV/AIDS infections, the more fund the

governments have to raise for them. Not to

mention the victim of HIV, but what about people

who have them because of wrong behavior?

Healthcare services

Unemployment

grants

There must be possible solutions to prevent

all these bad future from happening…

If people is well educated in a

good environment, people will

get to know more about HIV/AIDS

and exactly how HIV/AIDS is

spread so stigma of HIV/AIDS can

be reduce.

HIV people and normal people

can live harmoniously together and

support each other.

The effectiveness of this

methods is still a question

mark.

Raising awareness is also an effective solution as it helps people

to pay attention at the people living with HIV and not to

discriminate them.

There are two biggest events that take place every yearwhich

are HIV Vaccine Awareness Day (HVAD) and HIV/AIDS day.

This day provides an opportunity to

recognize andthanksthe many

volunteers, community members, health professionals, and scientists who

are working together to find a safe

and effective HIV vaccine.

It is also a day to educate

communities across the nation about the importance of HIV

vaccine research.

• World AIDS Day is held on 1 December each

year.

• World AIDS Day was the first ever global

health day and the first onewas held in 1988.

• An opportunity for people worldwide to unite:

In the fight against HIV.

Show their support for people living with HIV.

To commemorate people who have died.

• World AIDS Day reminds the public and government that HIV still exist.

THEREFORE,

raise money, increase awareness, fight prejudice

and improve education is a vital need.

According to a healthcare workers, “My health

facility has policies to protect HIV positive patients

from discrimination. I will get in trouble at work if I

do not follow the policies to protect patients living

with HIV. Since I have been working at my

institution, I have been trained in protecting the

confidentiality of patients’ HIV status.

• Stigma is the most dangerous aspect of HIV/AIDS as not only affects the people living with HIV but also impact a lots on the society.

• The stigma of HIV will scare people living with HIV,push them to avoid testing and treatments and they can be physically damage.

People living with HIV can

become violent and they could

put the whole society into the

risk of getting infected.

There will always be some

of a matter.

And in this case, we can still count on the

to prevent

from happening…

If you cannot watch it you can go to this website https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyrWjqVn8lc

- To raise awareness about bad

consequences of stigma

- To give a hand to HIV/AIDS

people in their hard time so they

know that they are NOT ALONE in

this fight!

http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-stigma-and-discrimination.htm

http://unlockinghiv.com/?page_id=402

http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/in-china-people-with-aids-face-stigma-at-hospitals-that-refuse-to-treat-them-1.1058413

http://www.mid-day.com/articles/people-think-transgenders-are-a-species-with-no-emotion-who-beg-on-the-streets/234313

http://www.conversationsforabetterworld.com/2010/08/hivaids-related-stigma-and-discrimination/

http://www.webmd.com/hiv-aids/news/20100722/aids-patients-cite-stigma-and-depression

http://www.eschooltoday.com/hiv-aids/hiv-aids-stigma.html

http://caps.ucsf.edu/archives/factsheets/stigma

http://www.aidsmap.com/HIV-stigma-treatment-and-prevention/page/1037658/

http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-uganda.htm

http://www.microbiologybook.org/lecture/hiv5.htm

http://strive.lshtm.ac.uk/system/files/attachments/STRIVE_stigma%20brief-A4.pdf

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2835402/

http://www.worldaidsday.org/about-world-aids-day.php

http://www.aidsmap.com/files/file1001097.pdf

http://www.webmd.com/hiv-aids/guide/aids-discrimination-

stigma-how-to-cope

http://www.stopaidsnow.org/cross-cutting-issues-stigma-and-

discrimination

http://kff.org/hivaids/issue-brief/hiv-intimate-partner-violence-and-women-new-opportunities-under-the-affordable-care-

act/