Thesis (MSocSci(Gender studies))-University of Pretoria, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Kent State University, 2007. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Apr. 29, 2009). Advisor: Stevan E. Hobfoll. Keywords: psychological, distress, resources, inner-city, women, AIDS, HIV, program. Includes bibliographical references (p. 82-101).

Thesis (M.SP)--Unitec New Zealand, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-118).

Master of Public Health - MPH / The way gender relations influence access to care and treatment particularly access to antiretroviral medicines is a challenge to HIV/AIDS programmes and to the individuals and families with HIV. Gender norms that push women and men to adhere to dominant ideals of femininity and masculinity may restrict women's access to economic resources, health care and fuel the spread of HIV. The aim of this study was to determine the role of gender relations in influencing decision-making for access to antiretroviral medicines between partners and in the family. / South Africa

Master of Public Health - MPH / Each year approximately 600 000 infants, most of them in Sub-Saharan Africa are born with HIV infection as a result of mother to child transmission of HIV. Whereas significant progress has been made in reduction of mother to child transmission of HIV in developed countries, the situation remains desperate in developing countries. Progress has been hampered by shortage of staff, facilities, limited access to voluntary counselling and testing and lack of support for women by their partners and communities. The challenge is to increase voluntary counselling and testing uptake during antenatal care. Onandjokwe district in Northern Namibia is currently introducing the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission Program (PMTCT). It has been found the previous PMTCT programs have failed because they adopted a top down approach where there was no community consultation. This study was conducted to explore the community perceptions, knowledge and attitudes regarding mother to child transmission of HIV through focus group discussions and in-depth interviews of key community members. / South Africa

Magister Artium - MA / This study focuses on the impact of HIV/AIDS on women in Namibia. Namibia, with a population of only 1.7 million people, is ranked as the seventh highest country in the world in terms of HIV/AIDS infections. The percentage of women living with HIV/AIDS in Namibia accounts for 54% of the total of 68 196 people in the country living with the virus. Women are also diagnosed with the disease at a younger age (30) in comparison to their male counterparts (35 years). Desoite their needs, women living with HIV/AIDS bear a triple burden of caring for those living with HIV/AIDS, caring for themselves and coping with the responses to their infection. There are few focused intervention strategies to support and care for women living with HIV/AIDS in Namibia. / South Africa

The African continent has been hit the hardest by the HIV/AIDS epidemic which has seen more women becoming infected than men (Hunter, 2003; UNAIDS, 2004). This has been attributed to the permissible nature of the African culture which is lenient on male promiscuity (Foreman, 1999; Colvin 2000; Leclerc-Madlala 2001; Dube 2003). African women are not only vulnerable to infection but are also vulnerable to negative disclosure experiences when they disclose their status to sexual partners. This double impact of culture has not been addressed by past researches (UNAIDS 2004). The present research thus attempts to fill that gap. It explores the interplay between culture and HIV transmission as well as the interplay between culture and disclosure experiences. The study’s setting is Magunje Township, a rural village in Mashonaland Central province in Zimbabwe. Taking into consideration the limitations of the present analysis, data gathered indicates that African women are vulnerable to both HIV infection and negative disclosure experiences. Their vulnerability also hampers prevention and treatment efforts as it makes them decide to keep their status a secret from sexual partners for fear of losing the financial income tied to sexual partners. The present researcher concludes with some suggestions for policy makers and programme implementers, highlighting the importance of focusing on HIV/AIDS status disclosure as a prevention and treatment method in the absence of a cure for HIV.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: An exploratory study was conducted to determine the psychosocial stressors of women living with HIV/AlDS. The study also included the utilisation of group work by social workers to support HIV positive women. The exploratory study was also conducted to determine HIV positive women's experiences in a support group. The researcher's interest in group work, as well as her involvement with a support group with HIV positive women, is the motivation for the study. The aim of the study is to provide an explanation of the psychosocial stressors that HIV positive women experience and also to capture their experiences regarding the support group they attend. Nine psychosocial stressors, namely anger, fear, loss, grieve, guilt, denial and disclosure, depression, suicidal behaviour and anxiety, were included in the literature study. The advantages, disadvantages and components of group work, as well as comparisons of effective and ineffective groups, were highlighted. The research also focused on planning a group for women with HIV/AlDS, with special attention given to the needs assessment, the purpose of the group, the group composition and the structure of the group. The value of group work with HIV positive women was investigated. The universum was HIV positive women at the Walvis Bay Multi-Purpose Centre. The qualitative research method that was used took the form of structured interviews. The results of this study generally confirmed the findings of the literature study. Recommendations include ways in which social workers can assist HIV positive women not only on an individual basis but also especially in a group setting, and recommendations concerning future research. The importance of future research with HIV positive women was especially recommended. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: 'n Verkennende studie is onderneem om die psigososiale stresfaktore wat HIV positiewe vroue ondervind, te bepaal. Die studie het ook maatskaplike werkers se gebruik van groepwerk om HIV positiewe vroue te ondersteun, ondersoek. Die navorsing is voorts onderneem om HIV positiewe vroue se ervarings van 'n ondersteunersgroep te bepaal. Die navorser se belangstelling in groepwerk, en haar betrokkenheid by 'n ondersteunersgroep vir HIV positiewe vroue, was die motivering om die studie te onderneem. Die doel met die studie is om die psigososiale stresfaktore wat HIV positiewe vroue ondervind, te beskryf en te verduidelik, en ook om sommige van die ervarings wat sulke vroue in 'n ondersteunersgroep ondervind, te boekstaaf. Nege psigososiale stresfaktore, naamlik woede, vrees, verlies, droefheid, skuldgevoel, ontkenning en onthulling, depressie, selfmoordgedrag en angs, is in die literatuurstudie bestudeer. Die komponente en voor- en nadele van groepwerk, asook 'n vergelyking van effektiewe en oneffektiewe groepe is ook ingesluit. Die beplanning van 'n groep vir HIV positiewe vroue is benadruk, met spesiale verwysing na die behoeftebepaling, en die doel, die samestelling en die struktuur van die groep. Die waarde van groepwerk vir HIV positiewe vroue is ook ondersoek. Die universum is HIV positiewe vroue by die Walvisbaai Multi-Purpose Centre. Die kwalitatiewe navorsingsmetode wat gebruik is, is gestruktureerde onderhoude. Die resultate van die studie het in die algemeen die bevindinge van die literatuurstudie onderskryf. Aanbevelings sluit in wyses waarop maatskaplike werkers HIV positiewe vroue nie alleen op 'n individuele basis nie, maar ook in groepsverband kan ondersteun, asook moontlike gebiede vir verdere navorsing. Die belang van verdere navorsing met HIV positiewe vroue word veraI beklemtoon.

Leprosy in biblical times was a stigmatised skin disease. It was not an easily recognisable skin disease because any skin disease was suspected of being leprosy . However leprosy as a skin disease could not be hidden , because it showed quite easily . People who had contracted leprosy were considered impure and unclean and were cast out of society. Today however, we have a cure for people with leprosy and it is not considered a terminal disease. However, we have indeed an incurable disease, namely AIDS. My question is, how do we consider people with AIDS today, especially women. Are they being treated as unclean, even though we cannot see the disease, or are they also the outcasts of our society today? My guess is that women are the victims today, as much as they were in biblical times, rather than the perpetrators. Women living with AIDS today is what motivated me to investigate the ancient biblical times to see how women at that time coped with an incurable disease in a society that treated them as outcasts. Thus , my study will focus on women with leprosy in ancient biblical times , but also will include a section on women with AIDS today for the sake of relevance. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)