ABSTRACT
The current study aimed to document intervention practices, challenges, and training needs concerning the intersections between HIV and intimate partner violence (IPV) among community service providers (n = 12). A direct content analysis using the Trauma-Informed Approach was performed. Results revealed that community service providers need to create a safe, trusting, and mutually collaborative environment in which the intersections between HIV and IPV trauma are recognized, screened, and discussed with women. These results also highlight the need to consolidate partnerships between HIV and IPV organizations to provide relevant services that consider traumatic experiences. Overall, these findings support the urgent need to develop, implement, and evaluate targeted community interventions that jointly address HIV and IPV.
Subject(s)
Community Health Services/methods , Community Health Workers/psychology , HIV Infections/psychology , Intimate Partner Violence/prevention & control , Adult , Community-Based Participatory Research , Domestic Violence/prevention & control , Female , Focus Groups , Humans , Interpersonal Relations , Interviews as Topic , Intimate Partner Violence/psychology , Intimate Partner Violence/statistics & numerical data , Male , Middle Aged , Qualitative ResearchABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to assess the short-term effects of Gundo-So-a program aimed at empowering Malian women living with HIV (WLHIV) regarding serostatus disclosure management. METHODS: A pre-experimental study with two measures (one week before and four weeks after Gundo-So) was carried out. A 35-item questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of 210 WLHIV. Six outcomes were considered: ability to decide whether or not to disclose HIV status, self-efficacy to keep HIV status a secret, self-efficacy to disclose HIV status, feeling crushed by the weight of secrecy, perceived physical health, and perceived psychological health. For each outcome, temporal changes associated with the intervention were assessed using linear regressions with random intercepts. RESULTS: Statistically significant change was observed for all six outcomes between the pre- and post-intervention measures. Furthermore, several variables were associated with the baseline levels of the outcomes and the intervention effect. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that Gundo-So empowers Malian WLHIV with regard to serostatus disclosure management, thus improving their perceived physical and psychological health. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: These results highlight the need for programs to empower WLHIV regarding serostatus disclosure, so that WLHIV can make free and informed decisions regarding serostatus disclosure.
