1. Envisioning Women-Centered HIV Care: Perspectives from Women Living with HIV in Canada
- Author
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Nadia O'Brien, Saara Greene, Allison Carter, Johanna Lewis, Valerie Nicholson, Gladys Kwaramba, Brigitte Ménard, Elaina Kaufman, Nourane Ennabil, Neil Andersson, Mona Loutfy, Alexandra de Pokomandy, Angela Kaida, Aranka Anema, Denise Becker, Lori Brotto, Claudette Cardinal, Guillaume Colley, Erin Ding, Janice Duddy, Nada Gataric, Robert S. Hogg, Terry Howard, Shahab Jabbari, Evin Jones, Mary Kestler, Andrea Langlois, Viviane Lima, Elisa Lloyd-Smith, Melissa Medjuck, Cari Miller, Deborah Money, Gina Ogilvie, Sophie Patterson, Neora Pick, Eric Roth, Kate Salters, Margarite Sanchez, Jacquie Sas, Paul Sereda, Marcie Summers, Christina Tom, Clara Wang, Kath Webster, Wendy Zhang, Rahma Abdul-Noor, Jonathan Angel, Fatimatou Barry, Greta Bauer, Kerrigan Beaver, Anita Benoit, Breklyn Bertozzi, Sheila Borton, Tammy Bourque, Jason Brophy, Ann Burchell, Allison Carlson, Lynne Cioppa, Jeffrey Cohen, Tracey Conway, Curtis Cooper, Jasmine Cotnam, Janette Cousineau, Marisol Desbiens, Annette Fraleigh, Brenda Gagnier, Claudine Gasingirwa, Trevor Hart, Shazia Islam, Charu Kaushic, Logan Kennedy, Desiree Kerr, Lynne Leonard, Carmen Logie, Shari Margolese, Marvelous Muchenje, Mary (Muthoni) Ndung'u, Kelly O’Brien, Charlene Ouellette, Jeff Powis, Corinna Quan, Janet Raboud, Anita Rachlis, Edward Ralph, Sean Rourke, Sergio Rueda, Roger Sandre, Fiona Smaill, Stephanie Smith, Tsitsi Tigere, Wangari Tharao, Sharon Walmsley, Wendy Wobeser, Jessica Yee, Mark Yudin, Dada Mamvula Bakombo, Jean-Guy Baril, Marc Boucher, Isabelle Boucoiran, Nora Butler Burke, Pierrette Clément, José Côté, Janice Dayle, Danièle Dubuc, Mylène Fernet, Marilou Gagnon, Danielle Groleau, Aurélie Hot, Maxime Kiboyogo, Marina Klein, Gary Lacasse, Valérie Lamarre, Carrie Martin, Lyne Massie, Ken Monteith, Joanne Otis, Doris Peltier, Alie Pierre, Karène Proulx-Boucher, Danielle Rouleau, Geneviève Rouleau, Édénia Savoie, Cécile Tremblay, Benoit Trottier, Sylvie Trottier, Christos Tsoukas, Jacqueline Gahagan, Catherine Hankins, Renee Masching, and Susanna Ogunnaike-Cooke
- Subjects
Adult ,Counseling ,Gerontology ,Canada ,Health (social science) ,Social Stigma ,Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) ,HIV Infections ,Peer support ,medicine.disease_cause ,Cohort Studies ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Maternity and Midwifery ,Health care ,medicine ,Humans ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Reproductive health ,Health Services Needs and Demand ,030505 public health ,Poverty ,business.industry ,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health ,Gender Identity ,virus diseases ,Obstetrics and Gynecology ,Focus Groups ,Middle Aged ,Focus group ,Peer leadership ,Women's Health Services ,Women's Health ,Female ,0305 other medical science ,business ,Cohort study - Abstract
Background Women comprise nearly one-quarter of people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Canada. Compared with men, women living with HIV experience inequities in HIV care and health outcomes, prompting a need for gendered and tailored approaches to HIV care. Method Peer and academic researchers from the Canadian HIV Women's Sexual and Reproductive Health Cohort Study conducted focus groups to understand women's experience of seeking care, with the purpose of identifying key characteristics that define a women-centered approach to HIV care. Eleven focus groups were conducted with 77 women living with HIV across Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia, Canada. Results Women envisioned three central characteristics of women-centered HIV care, including i) coordinated and integrated services that address both HIV and women's health care priorities, and protect against exclusion from care due to HIV-related stigma, ii) care that recognizes and responds to structural barriers that limit women's access to care, such as violence, poverty, motherhood, HIV-related stigma, and challenges to safe disclosure, and iii) care that fosters peer support and peer leadership in its design and delivery to honor the diversity of women's experiences, overcome women's isolation, and prioritize women's ownership over the decisions that affect their lives. Conclusion Despite advances in HIV treatment and care, the current care landscape is inadequate to meet women's comprehensive care needs. A women-centered approach to HIV care, as envisioned by women living with HIV, is central to guiding policy and practice to improve care and outcomes for women living with HIV in Canada.
- Published
- 2017