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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Estimating The Cost And Effectiveness Of Different Sti Management Strategies For Sex Workers In Madagascar, Horizons Program Jan 2002

Estimating The Cost And Effectiveness Of Different Sti Management Strategies For Sex Workers In Madagascar, Horizons Program

HIV and AIDS

In Madagascar, the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is a serious public health problem, particularly among sex workers. A Horizons study conducted in 2000 found approximately two-thirds of female sex workers had an STI, although few were infected with HIV. Since the link between STIs and transmission of HIV has been well established, affordable strategies to manage STIs among sex workers need to be developed. Study investigators also assessed STI management practices in health facilities in two urban areas of Madagascar. Health practitioners were using a syndromic approach, which may be appropriate for managing certain STIs in the general …


Hiv/Aids Prevention Guidance For Reproductive Health Professionals In Developing-Country Settings, Helen Epstein, Daniel Whelan, Janneke Van De Wijgert, Purnima Mane, Suman Mehta Jan 2002

Hiv/Aids Prevention Guidance For Reproductive Health Professionals In Developing-Country Settings, Helen Epstein, Daniel Whelan, Janneke Van De Wijgert, Purnima Mane, Suman Mehta

HIV and AIDS

While the integration of information, technologies, and services to respond to HIV/AIDS may seem closely related, there are a variety of issues that continue to create obstacles to integration. Among these are the stigmatizing nature of HIV infection and AIDS and discrimination faced by those who are infected or perceived to be infected; sexual practices and identities that remain socially unacceptable; gender roles and relations that make it difficult for women and men to access information, services, and technologies on HIV prevention; reluctance to recognize the special needs of young people; and barriers to service delivery created by broader economic, …


Hiv/Aids-Related Stigma And Discrimination: A Conceptual Framework And An Agenda For Action, Richard Parker, Peter Aggleton, Kathy Attawell, Julie Pulerwitz, Lisanne Brown Jan 2002

Hiv/Aids-Related Stigma And Discrimination: A Conceptual Framework And An Agenda For Action, Richard Parker, Peter Aggleton, Kathy Attawell, Julie Pulerwitz, Lisanne Brown

HIV and AIDS

In 1987, Jonathan Mann, then director of the WHO Global Programme on AIDS, identified three phases of the HIV/AIDS epidemic: the epidemic of HIV, the epidemic of AIDS, and the epidemic of stigma, discrimination, and denial. Despite international efforts to tackle HIV/AIDS since then, stigma and discrimination (S&D) remain among the most poorly understood aspects of the epidemic. This poor understanding is due in part to the complexity and diversity of S&D, but also to limitations in current thinking within the field and the inadequacy of available theoretical and methodological tools. This paper proposes a new conceptual framework to help …


Zimbabwe: Cbd Roles Modified To Address Zimbabwe's Hiv/Aids Crisis, Frontiers In Reproductive Health Jan 2002

Zimbabwe: Cbd Roles Modified To Address Zimbabwe's Hiv/Aids Crisis, Frontiers In Reproductive Health

Reproductive Health

In September 1999, the Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council (ZNFPC) and the Population Council initiated a one-year study to assess the performance of ZNFPC’s community-based distribution (CBD) program. A continual decline in the program’s productivity, combined with the expanding HIV/AIDS epidemic, indicated a need to reconsider ZNFPC’s objectives and revise the roles and responsibilities of its full-time, salaried CBD agents. The study examined the productivity, costs, and potential sustainability of the CBD program. Researchers gathered information by reviewing program documents through 1999. They also interviewed program managers, district and community nurses, and community leaders and CBD agents from eight regions. …


How Community Structures Of Time And Opportunity Shape Adolescent Sexual Behavior In South Africa, Carol E. Kaufman, Shelley Clark, Ntsiki Manzini, Julian May Jan 2002

How Community Structures Of Time And Opportunity Shape Adolescent Sexual Behavior In South Africa, Carol E. Kaufman, Shelley Clark, Ntsiki Manzini, Julian May

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Recently, South Africa has led the world in rates of HIV/AIDS infection. Particularly among young adults, the prevalence of HIV has soared, now reaching 25 percent. The statistics suggest a high level of unprotected sex and risky sexual behavior even in the midst of high levels of knowledge. Research has focused on the dynamics of individuals’ and partners’ sexual decisionmaking. Little is known, however, about the larger context in which those decisions are made. What are the everyday experiences that influence risk-taking? Are young people with little to do more likely to engage in risky behavior? Do community opportunities of …


The Elderly And Aids: Coping Strategies And Health Consequences In Rural Tanzania, Julia Dayton, Martha Ainsworth Jan 2002

The Elderly And Aids: Coping Strategies And Health Consequences In Rural Tanzania, Julia Dayton, Martha Ainsworth

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The elderly are often especially likely to be adversely affected by the death from AIDS of prime-aged adults. The authors use a longitudinal survey of households from northwestern Tanzania in 1991-94 to compare the activities and wellbeing of the elderly in households before and after the death of a prime-aged adult with those of the elderly in households that did not experience the death of an adult. A significant proportion of adults suffering from AIDS return to their parents’ home shortly before death. Time spent by the elderly performing household chores rises following an adult’s death, and their participation in …


Pregnant Or Positive: Adolescent Childbearing And Hiv Risk In South Africa, Naomi Rutenberg, Carol E. Kaufman, Kate Macintyre, Lisanne Brown, Ali Mehyrar Karim Jan 2002

Pregnant Or Positive: Adolescent Childbearing And Hiv Risk In South Africa, Naomi Rutenberg, Carol E. Kaufman, Kate Macintyre, Lisanne Brown, Ali Mehyrar Karim

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

In communities where early age of childbearing is common and HIV prevalence is high, adolescent boys and girls may place themselves at risk of HIV to realize their childbearing preferences. In this paper, we analyze survey data from Kwa-Zulu-Natal province that explores whether an association exists between pregnancy preferences and behavioral and perceptual measures of HIV risk among adolescents in South Africa. Our analysis is based on data from 1,426 sexually active respondents aged 14-22 who participated in wave 1 of the “Transitions to Adulthood in the Context of AIDS in South Africa” study. We use logistic regression to model …


Premarital Sex In Vietnam: Is The Current Concern With Adolescent Reproductive Health Warranted?, Barbara Mensch, Wesley H. Clark, Dang Nguyen Anh Jan 2002

Premarital Sex In Vietnam: Is The Current Concern With Adolescent Reproductive Health Warranted?, Barbara Mensch, Wesley H. Clark, Dang Nguyen Anh

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

To the extent that research on Vietnamese adolescents has been conducted, it has been concerned with unprotected and unsanctioned sexual activity and its health consequences, namely abortion and sexually transmitted diseases, especially HIV. The question we pose is whether this concern is warranted. Is the population community justified in focusing its attention on early sexual activity and HIV risk? Even if the sexual behavior of young people can be considered problematic, are there perhaps other aspects of young people’s lives that should give us greater pause? The paper reviews the literature on adolescent sexual behavior in Vietnam and analyzes data …


Access To Treatment For Hiv/Aids: Report Of A Meeting Of International Experts, Johannes Van Dam, Sherry Hutchinson Jan 2002

Access To Treatment For Hiv/Aids: Report Of A Meeting Of International Experts, Johannes Van Dam, Sherry Hutchinson

HIV and AIDS

As of December 2001, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS is estimated at 40 million, and most live in the developing world. Advances in the development and availability of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs have led to a paradigm shift in most of the industrialized world, where highly active ARV therapy has resulted in a significant reduction in the prevalence of AIDS-related morbidity and mortality. In most of the developing world, however, the focus of national programs and international support continues to be on prevention and care in the absence of ARV treatment. While the moral imperative to provide the best …


Microfinance And Households Coping With Hiv/Aids In Zimbabwe: An Exploratory Study, Horizons Program Jan 2002

Microfinance And Households Coping With Hiv/Aids In Zimbabwe: An Exploratory Study, Horizons Program

HIV and AIDS

The widespread prevalence of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa adversely affects millions of households. In recent years, microfinance has been proposed as a strategy to help the households of microentrepreneurs respond to the negative economic impacts of HIV/AIDS. This attention to the potential role of microfinance builds upon earlier research that shows that microfinance institutions (MFIs) that charge commercial rates of interest and use sound business practices can become operationally self-sustainable and help improve the lives of the poor and vulnerable nonpoor. This type of MFI generally offers small loans, often combined with savings services. An MFI may also offer business …