HIV RELATED STIGMA AND DISCRIMINATION

What is Stigma?

• Stigma creates and reinforces inequalities.
• Stigma worsens fear, guilt, and shame for people from marginalized population.

  What is Discrimination?

• Discrimination is an action when a distinction is made against a person due to their belonging to a particular group or community.
• Discrimination acts against an individuals basic human rights.

People living with HIV/AIDS are constant victims of discrimination and stigma. They face it in all walks of life, be it at the work place, their homes or when trying to access public health services. They have to therefore live a life of secrecy and fear, never knowing when their secret may be exposed.

The shock on discovering that one is HIV+ compounded by the guilt and shame one feels initially, often makes the person almost reclusive. He feels his world has ended and any plans he might have for the future comes to an abrupt halt. He is driven to despair and thoughts of suicide often cross his mind. He feels there is no one he can talk to for fear of being rejected. He feels that should his status be revealed, he will immediately become the topic of discussion and gossip.

Stigma and Discrimination related to HIV is due to:

• Lack of information
• Beliefs ? moral / religious
• Incurable disease
• Infectious disease
• Poverty
• Caste / class
• Inaccurate media reporting
• Unclear legal framework
• Marginalised groups

Forms of Stigma & Discrimination:

Family

• ?     Block access to ones spouse or children
• ?     Physical isolation leads to depression and exclusion

Medical Fraternity

• ?     Refusal to give treatment or admit for treatment
• ?     Ask for repeat HIV tests/other diagnostic reports
• ?     Surgery delayed or cancelled
• ?     Bed signs / charts / prescriptions are labeled

Neighbors

• ?     Sever relationships, desertion, separation
• ?     Call names

Community

• ?     Block entry to common areas, facilities like toilets, ostracization from basic facilities

Education

• ?     Denied admission
• ?     Exclusion from group activities

Work Place

• ?     Removed from job or compelled to resign

Media

• ?     Reports are sensationalized and often based on death, fear, guilt, immorality

Govt. policy

• ?     Travel entry and restrictions on the basis of HIV status

“My in-laws accuse me of infecting my husband. They curse me for bringing doom to the family and debts occurred to the family due to the expenditure on medicines”

- A female client from Sahara

“It all happened in the central jail. I was an inmate at that time, a team of doctors from ICMR with their volunteers came and took blood samples from all the inmates, later they published it in the local newspaper with the names”

-An  ex-inmate from Imphal

Intervention

• Education and awareness
• Legal advocacy
• Empowerment of positive persons
• Increased social services
• Networking
• Policy Changes
• Sensitivity trainings for medical fraternity and law enforcement

source: SAHARA