‘Now, the question here is who to believe’: criminalising HIV nondisclosure, emotions and determinations of credibility in R. v. T.S.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarina Bogosavljevic ◽  
Jennifer M. Kilty
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Emotional Reactions ◽  
Moral Emotions ◽  
Sexual Partners ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Criminal Trials ◽  
Defence Counsel ◽  
Living With Hiv

This article examines how the judge, defence counsel and Crown prosecution in R. v. T.S. mobilised feeling and framing rules to assess the credibility of the complainants and accused. T.S. is a former Canadian Football League linebacker who was convicted of aggravated sexual assault for failing to disclose to two women that he is HIV positive. Our analysis of the trial transcripts reveals how T.S.’s failure to disclose his HIV-positive status and his lack of an overtly emotional courtroom display led to his construction as callous towards the health of his sexual partners and subsequently to his characterisation as noncredible. Alternatively, the complainants had to authentically re-perform their original emotional reactions to learning that T.S. was HIV positive while testifying in court in order to be deemed credible. This signals the retroactive aspect of emotions in the context of a trial. Using Ahmed’s notion of the ‘stickiness of emotion’, our second finding reveals that while the type and intensity of emotional courtroom displays structure interpretations of credibility in criminal trials, moral emotions such as indignation, fear and disgust stick to HIV. This implies a connection between perceptions of morality and credibility where people living with HIV/AIDS who fail to disclose are assessed as always-already unremorseful and noncredible thereby showcasing the continuity of HIV stigma. We show how determinations of credibility in HIV nondisclosure cases can problematically devalue the emotions that structure disclosure decision making in favour of prioritising the feelings of anger, shock, fear, frustration and disgust felt by complainants.

scholarly journals Disclosure of HIV seropositivity to sexual partner in Ethiopia: A systematic review

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 174550652110630
Author(s):  
Aklilu Endalamaw ◽  
Yibeltal Assefa ◽  
Demeke Geremew ◽  
Habte Belete ◽  
Berihun Assefa Dachew ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Confidence Interval ◽  
Odds Ratio ◽  
Adjusted Odds Ratio ◽  
Sexual Partners ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv Status ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
Status Disclosure ◽  
The Impact

Introduction: In Ethiopia, the burden of HIV/AIDS is a public health issue that requires significant control of transmission. Once an infection has been established, determinants influence people living with HIV to disclose or not their HIV-positive status to sexual partners. This study assessed the proportion and associated factors of people living with HIV’s disclosure status to sexual partners. Methods: CRD42020149092 is the protocol’s registration number in the PROSPERO database. We searched PubMed, Scopus, African Journals Online, and Google Scholar databases. For the subjective and objective assessment of publication bias, we used a funnel plot and Egger’s regression test, respectively. The I2 statistic was used to assess variation across studies. Meta-analysis of weighted inverse variance random-effects model was used to estimate the pooled proportion. We conducted subgroup and sensitivity analyses to investigate the cause of heterogeneity and the impact of outliers on the overall estimation, respectively. A trend analysis was also performed to show the presence of time variation. Results: The percentage of people living with HIV who disclosed their HIV-positive status to sexual partners was 76.03% (95% confidence interval: 68.78, 83.27). Being on antiretroviral therapy (adjusted odds ratio = 6.19; 95% confidence interval: 2.92, 9.49), cohabiting with partner (adjusted odds ratio = 4.48; 95% confidence interval: 1.24, 7.72), receiving HIV counseling (adjusted odds ratio = 3.94; 95% confidence interval: 2.08, 5.80), having discussion prior to HIV testing (adjusted odds ratio = 4.40; 95% confidence interval: 2.11, 6.69), being aware of partner’s HIV status (adjusted odds ratio = 6.08; 95% confidence interval: 3.05, 9.10), positive relationship with partner (adjusted odds ratio = 4.44; 95% confidence interval:1.28, 7.61), and being member of HIV association (adjusted odds ratio = 3.70; 95% confidence interval: 2.20, 5.20) had positive association with HIV status disclosure. Conclusion: In Ethiopia, more than one-fourth of adults living with HIV did not disclose their HIV-positive status to sexual partners. HIV-positive status disclosure was influenced by psychosocial factors. A multidimensional approach is required to increase seropositive disclosure in Ethiopia.

scholarly journals Disclosure of HIV status to sexual partners by people living with HIV

Curationis ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gloria T. Tshweneagae ◽  
Victoria M. Oss ◽  
Tennyson Mgutshini
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Transmission ◽  
Sexual Partners ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv Status ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Hiv Prevention Strategies ◽  
Fear Of Rejection ◽  
Living With Hiv

Background: Disclosure of one’s HIV status to a sexual partner can have significant health implications. From a health promotion point of view, disclosure is seen as a cornerstone for the prevention of HIV transmission between partners. Despite its importance as a strategy for controlling the spread of HIV, there are challenges that inhibit voluntary disclosure.Objectives: In exploring factors associated with disclosure of HIV status, the study had two complementary objectives related to: (1) investigation of participants’ views about HIV-positive status disclosure to sexual partners; and (2) a broader identification of factors that influence disclosure of HIV-positive status.Method: The study explored factors associated with disclosure of the HIV status of people living with HIV to their sexual partners. Purposive sampling was used to select 13 participants living with HIV who attended a wellness clinic. Primary data were collected via an in-depth interview with each of the participants.Results: The exploration showed that male participants were notably more reluctant to disclose to their sexual partners for fear of rejection; and secrecy was commonly reported around sexual matters. Female participants (who were in the majority) were relatively more willing to disclose their HIV status to their sexual partners. Despite the complexity of disclosure, all participants understood the importance of disclosure to their sexual partners.Conclusion: There is a need for HIV prevention strategies to focus on men in particular, so as to strengthen disclosure counselling services provided to people living with HIV and to advocate strongly for partner testing.

The Bio/Necropolitics of ACTG 076: Lessons from Pregnant Women of Colour Living with HIV for Treatment for Prevention in the Twenty-first Century

Somatechnics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-253
Author(s):  
Eli Manning
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Transmission ◽  
Ethical Dilemmas ◽  
Hiv Treatment ◽  
First Century ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
Treatment As Prevention ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv Positive Women ◽  
Aids Clinical Trials ◽  
Living With Hiv

Since the pharmaceutical turn, using HIV treatment to prevent transmission is increasingly common. Treatment as Prevention®, or TasP, has relied on HIV treatment to prevent HIV transmission, targeting people living with HIV. However, TasP is predicated on troublesome heterosexist, classist, and racist medical practices borrowed from various times and spaces that enact biopolitical and necropolitical relations. This paper discusses the debate surrounding the first clinical trial that used HIV treatment to prevent transmission from woman-to-foetus. The 1994 landmark AIDS Clinical Trials Group 076 study laid the groundwork for using HIV treatment to prevent HIV transmission, the essential precursor to TasP. By examining the concerns of HIV positive women of colour and other AIDS activists, we are able to understand the ethical dilemmas and practical consequences that still haunt today's game-changing uses of HIV treatment for prevention and to see how biopolitics and necropolitics persist in TasP.

scholarly journals Food consumption and nutritional status of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA): a case of Thika and Bungoma Districts, Kenya

2009 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 475-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Nafula Kuria
Keyword(s):  
Nutritional Status ◽  
Food Consumption ◽  
Dietary Habits ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv Aids

AbstractObjectiveTo establish the food consumption, dietary habits and nutritional status of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and adults whose HIV status is not established.DesignCross-sectional descriptive survey.SettingThika and Bungoma Districts, Kenya.SubjectsA random sample of 439 adults; 174 adults living with HIV/AIDS and 265 adults whose HIV/AIDS status was not established in Thika and Bungoma Districts.ResultsMajority of PLWHA consume foods that are low in nutrients to build up the immune system and help maintain adequate weight, and there is little variety in the foods they consume. More adults who are HIV-positive are undernourished than those whose status is not established. Of the HIV-positive adults, those with a BMI of ≤18·5 kg/m2 were 23·6 % (Thika 20·0 % and Bungoma 25·7 %) while of the adults whose status is not established those with BMI ≤ 18·5 kg/m2 were 13·9 % (Thika 9·3 % and Bungoma 16·7 %).ConclusionsAdults who are HIV-positive are more likely to be undernourished than those whose status is not established, as there is a significant difference (P = 0·000) between the nutritional status (BMI) of PLWHA and those whose HIV/AIDS status is not established. PLWHA consume foods that are low in nutrients to promote their nutritional well-being and health.

scholarly journals Psychosocial Determinants of HIV Stigma among Men Who Have Sex with Men in San Francisco, California

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 8031
Author(s):  
Dharma N. Bhatta ◽  
Jennifer Hecht ◽  
Shelley N. Facente
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Adjusted Risk ◽  
Sex With Men ◽  
Living With Hiv

Background: Stigma and discrimination are major challenges faced by people living with HIV (PLWH), and stigma continues to be prevalent among PLWH. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 584 men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV between July 2018 and December 2020, designed to better understand which demographic and behavioral characteristics of MSM living with HIV in San Francisco, California are associated with experience of stigma, so that programs and initiatives can be tailored appropriately to minimize HIV stigma’s impacts. Methods: This analysis was conducted with data from San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) encompassing services from multiple different locations in San Francisco. Data about the level of HIV-related stigma experienced were collected through a single question incorporated into programmatic data collection forms at SFAF as part of the client record stored in SFAF’s electronic health record. We performed linear regression to determine the associations between self-reported experiences of HIV stigma and other characteristics among MSM living with HIV. Results: HIV stigma was low overall among MSM living with HIV who are actively engaged in HIV care in San Francisco; however, it was significantly higher for the age groups of 13–29 years (adjusted risk difference (ARD): 0.251, 95% CI: 0.012, 0.489) and 30–49 years (ARD: 0.205, 95% CI: 0.042, 0.367) when compared to the age group of 50 years and older, as well as people who were homeless (ARD: 0.844, 95% CI: 0.120, 1.568), unstably housed (ARD: 0.326, 95% CI: 0.109, 0.543) and/or having mental health concerns (ARD: 0.309, 95% CI: 0.075, 0.544), controlling for race, injection history, and viral load. Conclusions: These findings highlight an opportunity to develop culturally, socially, and racially appropriate interventions to reduce HIV stigma among MSM living with HIV, particularly for younger men and those struggling with housing stability and/or mental health.

scholarly journals What is the level of uptake of Partner Notification Services in HIV testing  in Selected Health Facilities in Muranga County – Kenya; a retrospective Study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rewel Kariuki ◽  
Gilbert Koome Rithaa ◽  
Oyugi Elvis ◽  
Daniel Gachathi
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Testing ◽  
Partner Notification ◽  
Sexual Partners ◽  
Health Facilities ◽  
World Health ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Case Identification ◽  
Health Organization

Abstract Background: Identification of people living with HIV is key in HIV prevention and control. Partner Notification service is a World Health Organization backed strategy of reaching out to sexual partners of people diagnosed with HIV for HIV testing. However, its adoption and success rate in Kenya remains unknown.Methods: A cross sectional facility based study was undertaken in five purposively selected health facilities in Muranga County, Kenya. A retrospective review of patient medical records data for HIV positive index clients and their Sexual Partners conducted. Census approach applied to extract data for study subjects from Partner Notification Service registers for the period covering January 2017 to August 2018. Epi Info software was used for data analysis.Results: A total of 183 index clients offered Partner notification services. The mean age of the indexed clients studied was 39(SD ±13.1). Females comprised 64 % of clients studied. Of the 183 indexed clients, 89% accepted the services and elicited 216 sexual partners for tracing. The ratio of elicited sexual partners to index client was 1.3:1. Out of the 216 sexual partners, 77% were reached and tested. A total of 46 [32%] of the sexual partners elicited and traced, tested HIV positive. The most preferred approaches were provider referral (51%) and contract referral (45%). Dual referral (4%) was the least preferred approach. Conclusions: Partner notification services is acceptable and an effective strategy of increasing HIV case identification and raising awareness to exposed sexual partners in low resource countries.

scholarly journals Health care providers and HIV

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne C. Wagner
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Related Stigma ◽  
Convergent And Divergent Validity ◽  
Living With Hiv

The current investigation seeks to examine the attitudes and beliefs of health care providers in Canada about people living with HIV. The line of research consists of three studies. Study 1 was a qualitative study conducted with a critical lens. The critical lens was used in a series of four focus groups when qualitatively soliciting opinions about the range of attitudes, behaviours and cognitions health care providers may have towards people living with HIV. Study 2 used the information gathered from Study 1 to develop a scale to assess HIV stigma in health care providers. Items were created from examples and themes found in the qualitative study, and were tested via exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, test-retest reliability analysis, and assessed for convergent and divergent validity. Study 3 examined the newly developed scale’s relationship to proposed overlapping stigmas and attitudes, and tested the adapted intersectional model of HIV-related stigma with health care trainees using the newly developed HIV stigma scale as an outcome measure. The line of research found that HIV stigma continues to be a significant problem in the health care system. The scale developed in Study 2 demonstrates that HIV stigma can be conceptualized and assessed as a tripartite model of discrimination, stereotyping and prejudice, and that this conceptualization of HIV stigma supports an intersectional model of overlapping stigmas with homophobia, racism, stigma against injection drug use and stigma against sex work.

scholarly journals Loco-Regional Treatments for Hepatocellular Carcinoma in People Living with HIV

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-55
Author(s):  
Cristina Micali ◽  
Ylenia Russotto ◽  
Grazia Caci ◽  
Manuela Ceccarelli ◽  
Andrea Marino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽  
Overall Survival ◽  
Cancer Staging ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Liver Cancers ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Cancer Specific Mortality ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv Negative

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) accounts for approximately 75–90% of primary liver cancers and is the sixth most common cancer and the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. In the HIV-positive population, the risk of HCC is approximately four times higher than in the general population, with higher cancer-specific mortality than in HIV-negative patients. In most cases, HCC diagnosis is made in patients younger than the HIV-negative population and in the intermediate-advanced stage, thus limiting the therapeutic possibilities. Treatment choice in HIV-positive patients with HCC is subject to cancer staging, liver function and health status, as for HIV-negative and non-HIV-negative HCC patients. There are relatively few studies on the efficacy and safety in HIV-positive patients to date in loco-regional treatments for HCC. So far, literature shows that curative treatments such as radiofrequency ablation (RFA) have no significant differences in overall survival between HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients, as opposed to palliative treatments such as TACE, where there is a significant difference in overall survival. Although it can be assumed that the most recently discovered loco-regional therapies are applicable to HIV-positive patients with HCC in the same way as HIV-negative patients, further studies are needed to confirm this hypothesis. The purpose of our review is to evaluate these treatments, their efficacy, effectiveness, safety and their applicability to HIV-positive patients.

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