HIV-related stigma and discrimination and human rights violations constitute great barriers to preventing HIV infection; providing care, support and treatment; and alleviating the impacts of the epidemic. This publication documents case studies of successful action in different countries addressing HIV-related human rights violations, stigma and discrimination.
Up until now, many articles have been written to portray stigma and discrimination which occur with people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in many parts of the world. But this is the first book which attempts to put together results from empirical research relating to stigma, discrimination and living with HIV/AIDS. The focus of this book is on issues relevant to stigma and discrimination which have occurred to individuals and groups in different parts of the globe, as well as how these individuals and groups attempt to deal with HIV/AIDS. The book comprises chapters written by researchers who carry out their projects in different parts of the world and each chapter contains empirical information based on real life situations. This can be used as an evidence for health care providers to implement socially and culturally appropriate services to assist individuals and groups who are living with HIV/AIDS in many societies. The book is of interest to health care providers who have their interests in working with individuals and groups who are living with HIV/AIDS from a cross-cultural perspective. It will be useful for students and lecturers in courses such as anthropology, sociology, social work, nursing, public health and medicine. In particular, it will assist health workers in community health centres and hospitals in understanding issues related to HIV/AIDS and hence provide culturally sensitive health care to people living with HIV/AIDS from different social and cultural backgrounds. The book is useful for anyone who is interested in HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination in diverse social and cultural settings.
This book explores a number of issues related to the stigma arising from HIV/AIDS infection, perceived or actual discrimination from the community and society and the extent of vulnerabilities for infected Asian refugees and immigrants. It assesses the health care and treatment regimen for HIV/AIDS accessed by immigrants and refugee claimants in North America, including treatments offered by the health-care system and ethnic communities and their perceptions and biases relating to HIV/AIDS issues. On another level, the book identifies the ways in which HIV-sufferer immigrants and refugees/refugee claimants from Asia are vulnerable to discrimination due to 1) lack of information about HIV/AIDS incidence in the community; 2) inability of the health system to respond appropriately; and 3) the community’s need for introspection on their own health issues. This book reveals the dynamics that influence choice, behavior and lifestyle of HIV sufferer immigrants, adds to the existing knowledge about refugees and migrants and proposes a unified theory of discrimination and stigmatization within the context of human rights. In addition, the book presents a number of policy recommendations based on empirical findings with a view to helping reshape polices regarding refugee HIV sufferers and their social ramifications. This book will be of interest to researchers and students in any field from social sciences, health and psychology, as well as practitioners in the field of development and public policy. The book will be beneficial to policy formulators and implementers engaged in addressing the serious threat emanating from the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
This 22-page report describes how discrimination and human rights abuses faced by migrant populations result in increased vulnerability to HIV infection and barriers to care and treatment.--Publisher description.
This handbook is designed to assist national human rights institutions to integrate HIV into their mandate to protect and promote human rights. It provides a basic overview of the role of human rights in an effective response to the epidemic and suggests concrete activities that national institutions can carry out within their existing work. It also presents possibilities for engaging with the national HIV response in order to protect and promote human rights . The handbook is primarily intended for use by staff of national human rights institutions, civil society organizations, networks of people living with HIV and national AIDS programs. It should be read together with the International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights.--Publisher's description.
And main recommendations. -- Methods. -- Background: HIV/AIDS and access to education - Surveys of AIDS-affected children's school performance - Human rights - Note on Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda. -- Findings from Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda: Children as caregivers in the home - Children left on their own - Emotional burdens and AIDS-related stigma - Schools ill-equipped - Abuse and discrimination within extended and foster families - Girls' exposure to secual violence and exploitation - Abuses against parents and guardians that in turn harm children - Child-headed households - Orphaned and living with HIV/AIDS - Lack of support to community-based organizations. -- National and international responses. -- Conclusion. -- Detailed recommendations: To national, provincial, and local governments in Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda - To international agencies and donors to HIV/AIDS programs operating in Kenya, South, Africa, and Uganda, including the World Bank, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the United Nations, and bilateral donors - To the above mentioned governments and donors. -- Acknowledgements. -- Appendix: Human Rights Watch's work on HIV/AIDS and children's rights.
There is now a vast literature on HIV and AIDS but much of it is based on traditional biomedical or epidemiological approaches. Hence it tells us very little about the experiences of the millions of people whose living and dying constitute the reality of this devastating pandemic. Doyal brings together findings from a wide range of empirical studies spanning the social sciences to explore experiences of HIV positive people across the world. This will illustrate how the disease is physically manifested and psychologically internalised by individuals in diverse ways depending on the biological, social, cultural and economic circumstances in which they find themselves. A proper understanding of these commonalities and differences will be essential if future strategies are to be effective in mitigating the effects of HIV and AIDS. Doyal shows that such initiatives will also require a better appreciation of the needs and rights of those affected within the wider context of global inequalities and injustices. Finally, she outlines approaches to address these challenges. This book will appeal to everyone involved in struggles to improve the well-being of those with HIV and AIDS. While academically rigorous, it is written in an accessible manner that transcends specific disciplines and, through its extensive bibliography, provides diverse source material for future teaching, learning and research.
