Bakgrund: På världsbasis lever 36,7 miljoner människor med sjukdomen Humant Immunbrist Virus (HIV). Då forskningen och behandlingen gått framåt från att vara en dödlig till kronisk sjukdom med rätt behandling, kan patienter idag leva ett helt liv. Trots detta bemöts patientgruppen många gånger med stigmatiserande attityder då kunskapen om sjukdomen visat sig vara bristfällig hos hälso-och sjukvårdspersonal. Syftet: Var att beskriva hur patienter med diagnosen HIV upplever bemötandet inom hälso-och sjukvården, samt att granska undersökningsgrupperna i de inkluderade artiklarna. Metod: Litteraturstudie med deskriptiv design. Sökningar utfördes i PubMed och CINAHL. Totalt 14 artiklar med kvalitativ design och två med mixad metod, där endast den kvalitativa delen presenteras i resultatet. Analysmetoden som användes till studien var Evans beskrivande modell. Resultat: Två huvudteman identifierades i studien kunskapsnivå och attitydernas betydelse i mötet. Studien visade att kunskapsnivån har betydelse för bemötandet. Patienterna upplevde att när personal hade högre kompetens och positivare attityder resulterade det i bättre bemötande. Däremot okunskap hos personalen visade sig i form av negativa attityder och rädsla för patientgruppen,vilket resulterade i onödigt lidande och inget förtroende för vården. Undersökningsgruppen presenterades utifrån ålder, kön, antal år med HIV samt geografisk tillhörighet. Slutsatser: Negativa attityder i form av stigmatisering och diskriminering återstår inom hälso-och sjukvården av HIV positiva patienter. Positiva attityder visade sig vara starkt sammankopplat med kunskapsnivån hos personalen. Ämnet behöver därför belysas för att omvårdnaden ska utvecklas och ett professionellt förhållningssätt upprätthållas. / Background: In global basis 36, 7 million people living with the disease Human Immuno deficiency Virus (HIV). As the research and treatment progressed from being a fatal to chronic disease, with proper treatment, patients can now live a full life. Despite this the patient group are treated many times with stigmatizing attitudes as knowledge of the disease shown to be deficient among healthcare personnel. Purpose: Was to describe how patients diagnosed with HIV experiencing the meeting with healthcare personnel, as well as to review the study groups in the included articles. Method: Literature study with descriptive design. Searches were carried out in PubMed and CINAHL. A total of 14 articles with qualitative design and two with mixed method, where only the qualitative part is presented in the results. The analytical method used for this study was Evans descriptive model. Findings: Two main themes were identified in the study, knowledge level and attitude of the significance of the meeting. The study showed that the level of knowledge is important for the meeting. Patients experienced that when personnel had higher skills and more positive attitudes this resulted in better treatment. In contrast, ignorance of the personnel turned out in the form of negative attitudes and fear of the patient group, resulting in unnecessary suffering and no confidence in health care. The study group presented based on age, sex, number of years with HIV and geographic affiliations. Conclusions: Negative attitudes in the form of stigma and discrimination remains in health care of HIV positive patients. Positive attitudes were shown to have a strong correlation level with expertise of the health care personnel. The subject needs to be highlighted in order to developing care and maintain a professional attitude.

The aim of this study was to explore, describe and interpret the experiences of Immunodeficiency Human Virus (HIV) infected mothers regarding exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of the infant’s life. This was a qualitative study with phenomenology as a design as the study was about lived experiences. The sample consisted of HIV infected mothers aged 18 years and above who opted for exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of their infant’s lives. Purposive sampling was used. Data was collected through one to one semi structured interviews of fifteen mothers of babies aged six to twelve months. The study revealed that mothers had both positive and negative experiences which were influenced by among others; the level of support the mothers received, disclosure of HIV status and health education received at the health facility. The findings of the study revealed a low level of understanding of the Infant and Young Child Feeding Policy by health professionals / Health Studies / M. A. (Health Studies)

Στην παρούσα μεταπτυχιακή εργασία αξιολογήθηκε η συνδυαστική θεραπευτική φαρμακευτική αγωγή των HIV οροθετικών ασθενών βασιζόμενη σε 2 δείκτες: 1) στο ιϊκό φορτίο VL (Varial Load, copies/ml) που εκφράζει τις συγκεντρώσεις του RNA του HIV στο αίμα και 2) στον αριθμό των CD4 Τ-λεμφοκυττάρων (κύτταρα/mm3) που εκφράζει των αριθμό των κυττάρων τα οποία βοηθούν τον ασθενή να καταπολεμήσει την λοίμωξη. Συγκεντρώθηκαν δεδομένα από 278 ασθενείς και 32 ‘παλιούς’, από όλη την Ελλάδα, για το χρονικό διάστημα 1990-2006 (Πανεπιστημιακό Νοσοκομείο Ρίο). Για καθέναν από τους ασθενείς ελήφθησαν δεδομένα σε φύλλα του excel, μη κατηγοριοποιημένα, και για καθέναν υπήρχαν από 20 έως 100 μετρήσεις. Μια τόσο εκτεταμένη συγκέντρωση δεδομένων για HIV οροθετικούς ασθενείς γίνεται για πρώτη φορά στην Ελλάδα. Η θεραπεία για τον HIV περιλαμβάνει συνήθως 3 ή περισσότερα φάρμακα (HAART). Στην παρούσα μελέτη χρησιμοποιήθηκαν 3 κατηγορίες αντιρετροϊκών φαρμάκων: 1. Νουκλεοσιδικοί αναστολείς της ανάστροφης μεταγραφάσης (NRTIs) (ομάδα πράσινη), (10 φάρμακα) 2. Mη νουκλεοσιδικοί αναστολείς της ανάστροφης μεταγραφάσης (NNRTIs) (ομάδα κίτρινη), (3 φάρμακα) 3. Αναστολείς των πρωτεασών (PIs) (ομάδα μπλέ) (11 φάρμακα) Οι ασθενείς ανάλογα με την αγωγή της πρώτης θεραπείας τους κατηγοριοποιήθηκαν σε ομάδες (4) και σε υποομάδες με βάση τα επιμέρους φάρμακα κάθε ομάδας: Ομάδα πράσινη (ΝRTIs) (72 ασθενείς) Ομάδα πράσινη- μπλε (ΝRTIs-PIs) (139 ασθενείς)και 8 επιμέρους υποομάδες Ομάδα πράσινη- κίτρινη (ΝRTIs-NΝRTIs) (35 ασθενείς)και 2 επιμέρους υποομάδες Ομάδα πράσινη-κίτρινη-μπλε (ΝRTIs-NΝRTIs- PIs) (3 ασθενείς) Οι ασθενείς των ομάδων και υποομάδων μελετήθηκαν ξεχωριστά, χωρισμένοι σε μη-πεπειραμένους (naïve) και σε πεπειραμένους (experienced). Η αξιολόγηση της θεραπείας των ασθενών (κατά ομάδες και υποομάδες) έγινε με βάση:  το % ποσοστό που πέτυχαν ‘μη-ανιχνεύσιμο’ VL≤50, καθώς και VL≤200 και VL≤500, ανά τρείς μήνες (διαγραμματική παρουσίαση).  Το ποσοστό των ασθενών που δεν πέτυχαν VL≤50.  Τον μέσο χρόνο που πέτυχε VL≤50 το 50% των ασθενών (ταχύτητα ανταπόκρισης στη θεραπεία).  Τη συσχέτιση των τιμών VLέναρξης και CD4έναρξης που είχαν οι επιτυχημένοι ασθενείς κατά την έναρξη της θεραπείας (κατηγοριοποίηση σε κλίμακες), καθώς και του CD4 την στιγμή επίτευξης VL≤50, με ταυτόχρονο υπολογισμό των %μεταβολών των VL και CD4. Με βάση τα παραπάνω προέκυψαν τα ακόλουθα: Η λήψη αποκλειστικά NRTIs (ποσοστό αποτυχίας VL≤50 78,5%) ήταν λιγότερο αποτελεσματική σε σχέση με συνδυαστική αγωγή NRTIs-ΡIs (επιτυχία 81,8%), ή με NRTIs-NNRTIs (επιτυχία 81,6%). Για να δράσει η αγωγή με αποκλειστικά NRTIs, απαιτείται μεγαλύτερο διάστημα, στο οποίο μπορεί η τιμή του VL να ελαττωθεί <500, αλλά είναι λιγότερο πιθανό να πέσει <200. Μεταξύ των NRTIs-PIs & NRTIs-NNRTIs λαμβάνοντας υπόψη και τον χρόνο που πέτυχε το 50% των ασθενών, η αγωγή NRTIs-NNRTIs ήταν πιο αποτελεσματική αφού επιτεύχθηκε VL≤50 σχεδόν στο 1/3 του χρόνου. Όσον αφορά τις επιμέρους υποομάδες (NRTIs-PIs & NRTIs-NNRTIs) οι naïve ασθενείς έφταναν ταχύτερα σε μη ανιχνεύσιμα επίπεδα VL σε σχέση με τους experienced (μικρότερη ταχύτητα ανταπόκρισης), με όλα τα ΡΙs που συνδυαζόταν με NRTIs, και είχαν μικρότερα ποσοστά αποτυχίας. Οι experienced ασθενείς (ποσοστά αποτυχίας 11 έως 87%) είχαν ως πιο επιτυχημένες αγωγές την πράσινο-μπλε4 (NRTIs-NLF), την πράσινο-μπλε3 (NRTIs-IND), ακολουθούμενη από την πράσινο-μπλε5 (NRTIs-SAQ) και λιγότερο επιτυχημένη την πράσινο-μπλε1 (NRTIs-RIT), ενώ για τις πράσινο-μπλε8 (ΝRTIs-ΑΒΤ), πράσινο-μπλε1,2 (ΝRTIs-RIT-ΙΝV) και πράσινο-μπλε1,3 (ΝRTIs-RIT-ΙΝD) δεν προέκυψαν ασφαλή συμπεράσματα. Στους naïve ασθενείς υπήρχαν διαφορές στην ταχύτητα ανταπόκρισης ανάλογα με τον ληφθέντα PI. Ταχύτερη ανταπόκριση παρατηρήθηκε με την αγωγή της πράσινο-κίτρινο (συνδυασμός NRTIs-EFV & NRTIs-VIR). Όσον αφορά την αγωγή NRTIs-ΡΙ, πιο αποτελεσματική ήταν η πράσινο-μπλέ4, ακολουθούμενη από την πράσινο-μπλέ5, ενώ αντίθετα οι συνδυασμοί πράσινο-μπλέ8 και πράσινο-μπλέ2 ήταν οι λιγότερο επιτυχημένοι. Υψηλή τιμή του CD4έναρξης και χαμηλή του VLέναρξης βοηθά στην επίτευξη VL≤50. Οι περισσότεροι naïve ασθενείς είχαν χαμηλό VLέναρξης 1.000-10.000 και υψηλό CD4έναρξης (όπως και οι περισσότεροι experienced) 300-550. Οι naïve ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλε2 (μεγαλύτερα ποσοστά αποτυχίας) είχαν σχετικά χαμηλό VLεν (<50.000) και CD4εν>100. Οι ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλε4, είχαν τα μεγαλύτερα ποσοστά επιτυχίας πιθανόν λόγω χαμηλού VLεν (1.000-50.000) και υψηλού CD4εν (300-750 και >750). Το 85% των ασθενών της πράσινο-μπλε5 (επιτυχημένη), είχαν VLεν <10.000 και μάλιστα όταν ήταν <1.000 η ταχύτητα ανταπόκρισης ήταν η μισή σε σχέση με όταν ήταν 1.000-10.000. Οι ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλε8, (επιτυχημένοι ακόμα και στις υψηλές κλίμακες VLεν), είχαν μεγάλο χρόνο ανταπόκρισης. Οι περισσότεροι (n=20) ασθενείς της πράσινο-κίτρινο3, είχαν VLεν 1.000-50.000 και υψηλό CD4εν 300-550 και πέτυχαν σε μεγαλύτερο χρόνο απ’ ότι της πράσινο-κίτρινο1. Για τους experienced ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλε2, αν και υπήρχαν ευνοϊκές συνθήκες (VLεν 1.000-50.000 και CD4εν 300-550) είχαν μεγάλο ποσοστό αποτυχίας. Οι ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλε5 (επιτυχημένη) είχαν VLεν<10.000 και όταν το CD4εν ήταν 550-750, η ταχύτητα ανταπόκρισης ήταν 4 φορές μεγαλύτερη. Οι επιτυχημένοι ασθενείς της πράσινης ομάδας κατά την επίτευξη VL≤50 (Μ.Ο.~47 μήνες) είχαν CD4 κατά ~33% αυξημένο σε σχέση με το CD4εν. Οι επιτυχημένοι ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλε είχαν CD4 όταν VL≤50 (Μ.Ο.~27 μήνες) αυξημένο κατά ~125% σε σχέση με το CD4εν και VLεν~80πλάσιο (Μ.Ο.~86.000). Οι επιτυχημένοι ασθενείς της πράσινο-κίτρινο είχαν επίσης ανάλογο αριθμό CD4εν, αλλά ο Μ.Ο. CD4 όταν VL≤50 ήταν μικρότερος (αυξημένος κατά 21,6% έναντι 125%). Πέτυχαν σε μόλις κατά Μ.Ο. 15 μήνες, έχοντας πολύ υψηλό Μ.Ο. VLεν (~129.000) και με ποσοστό επιτυχίας ανάλογο με αυτό της πράσινο-μπλέ ομάδας (~81,6%). Οι επιτυχημένοι naïve ασθενείς των υποομάδων πράσινο-μπλε, που είχαν τις υψηλότερες τιμές VLεν κατά σειρά αποτελεσματικότητας ήταν: Π-Μπλέ1,3(3 ασθενείς)> Π-Μπλέ1>Π-Μπλέ8. Τα CD4 των επιτυχημένων ασθενών της πράσινο-μπλέ4 την στιγμή που πέτυχαν (Μ.Ο.~22 μήνες), ήταν τα πιο υψηλά (Μ.Ο. 720). Οι επιτυχημένοι ασθενείς της πράσινο-μπλέ5 είχαν τις χαμηλότερες τιμές VLεν (Μ.Ο.~ 7.000) και CD4 την στιγμή που πέτυχαν υψηλά (Μ.Ο. ~600). Οι επιτυχημένοι ασθενείς των υποομάδων πράσινο-κίτρινο, είχαν υψηλές τιμές VL έναρξης (Μ.Ο.~130.000). Οι επιτυχημένοι experienced ασθενείς που είχαν τις υψηλότερες τιμές VLεν ήταν της πράσινο-μπλέ1 (Μ.Ο.~162.000), (αποτυχία~62%), της πράσινο-μπλέ2 (αποτυχία~87%) (Μ.Ο.~90.000), καθώς και των επιτυχημένων πράσινο-μπλέ3 και πράσινο-μπλέ4 (Μ.Ο.~86.000-130.000), ενώ της επιτυχημένης πράσινο-μπλέ5 είχαν χαμηλό VLεν (Μ.Ο.~3.000). / -

No description available.

Brucellosis is a disease of socio-economic and zoonotic importance worldwide. In animals it is associated with the ingestion of feed that is contaminated with cyetic material from aborting herd-mates, while in humans it is associated with the consumption of unpasteurised milk and dairy products from infected animals. It may also be acquired from contact with infected material of animal origin by farmers, veterinarians, and abattoir and laboratory workers. Brucellosis was first reported in South Africa in the late nineteenth century. It is still present in the country today, with reported annual losses of at least R 300 million, and a national annual incidence of 5 000 cases in humans. The global incidence of human brucellosis is about half a million infections annually. As the incidence of human brucellosis is directly associated with prevalence in animals, control of animal brucellosis is emphasised. Veterinary control is compromised by the chronic nature and the variable incubation period of the disease, with an estimated up to 15% of cattle in infected herds aborting before sero-conversion. Latency, which involves about 5% of calves born from infected dams, is also problematic as these infected animals often test seronegative, only to seroconvert in the peri-parturient period, thus allowing opportunity for disease spread within and between herds before diagnosis is made. In addition, the currently used serological tests are at times unable to distinguish brucellosis from cross-reacting antibodies from other infections or brucellosis vaccines. x It was the objective of this study to investigate, under South African conditions, the value of the brucellin skin test (BST) in improving the sensitivity and specificity of the currently used serological tests. It has proved a valuable additional test in diagnosing early and latent infections as well as in differentiating brucellosis from cross-reacting organisms in unvaccinated cattle in Europe. The study also evaluated the benefit of replacing some of the currently used serological assays with the fluorescence polarisation assay (FPA). The FPA, a rapid and homogenous serological test with only a few operational steps, has been validated and is in current use in Canada. The study was carried out in Mpumalanga Province, on herds selected to reflect prevailing South African farming conditions. These herds were divided into certified Brucella abortus-negative herds (608 head) for the estimation of BST specificity, and confirmed B. abortus-infected herds (845 head) for the estimation of BST sensitivity. The results obtained indicated the BST had a specificity of 99.18%, and a relative sensitivity of 42.86%. However, 65.38% of BST-positive animals were negative on serology. When the high specificity is considered, together with the experiences of other researchers who found that the skin test became positive earlier than serological tests, these animals may be assumed infected. It is concluded that the BST is a valuable addition to the panel of diagnostic tests currently used to identify infected herds and individuals in South Africa. The FPA, with a relative sensitivity of 93.65% and a specificity of 98.85%, can potentially be of use as a screening test under South African conditions. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / gm2014 / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / unrestricted

"Elections form a key component of democratic governance. Democracy denotes a political system that, among other things, allows citizens to freely choose their government over time through credible, legitimate and acceptable elections; a system which accords them adequate participation in national affairs and a system in which the national affairs are run in a transparent and accountable manner. Democracy as a concept rests upon the consideration that a political leadership in a country must be chosen through an electon governed by fair rules under which social groups and political forces may compete on equal terms. Research has shown that HIV and AIDS may have adverse effects on democracy in Southern Africa. Electoral systems, voter participation, electoral management and administration and political institutions are among the areas of democratisation most affected by HIV/AIDS. ... Chapter one introduces the topic, the research questions to be answered by the research and the research methodology. It also contains a brief literature survey of the research on this topic so far. Chapter two sets out the legal framweork, it gives an analysis of states obligations to ensure political participation based on international and regional standards. The rights of HIV/AIDS infected and affected persons to participate in government and the meaning of [the] right to vote is discussed. The application of the international law obligations to promote and fulfill [uman rights] are discussed and the question 'Do governments have a duty to set up special mechanisms to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic within the electoral context?' is answered. Chapter three is an examination of the relationship between HIV/AIDS and political participation. A brief overview of current electoral statistics and statistics of the trend of the HIV/AIDS pandemic are given. The chapter examines the possible reasons for lack of participation by HIV/AIDS infected and affected persons. Chapter four is a critical analysis of some responses that can be adopted to address the situation. It focuses on mechanical and structural reforms to the electoral process: amending electoral laws and policies to include postal, proxy and other special voting mechanisms; providing for specific legal obligations, for example to have mobile registration and polling stations, to ensure that there is a polling station within a specific distance so that people do not have to walk far and stand in long queues in order to vote. The failure to meet such obligations must have specific legal consequences. Chapter five suggests a more controversial reform of lowering the voting age to address the impact of HIV/AIDS on democracy and children. Chapter six [includes the] conclusion and recommendations." -- Introduction. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2005. / Prepared under the supervision of Dr. Naz K. Modirzadeh at the Department of Law, American University in Cairo, Egypt / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/academic_pro/llm1/dissertations.html / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / Introduction: In patients with HIV in antiretroviral treatment (ART) and virological failure to the first-line regimen, establishing a therapeutic regimen after having identified the M184V mutation, which confers ART resistance, represents a dilemma. Objective: To compare the virological response of the therapeutic regimens prescribed to patients with HIV who presented the M184V mutation in two national hospitals in Lima, Peru, during the years 2008 to 2019, and to determine the risk factors associated with poor virological response. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was developed based on the information of the HIV program participants with the M184V mutation. Results: A total of 175 participants were eligible for the study. The male sex predominated (75.4%), the current median age was 41 years [interquartile range (IQR) 35.84-47.47], and the time on ART was 89 months (IQR 57.7-124.53). The median initial viral load (VL) was 4.5 log10 copies/mL (IQR 3.97-5.09) and the time between genotyping and the change of therapy was 2 months (IQR 0-3.56). The most used antiretroviral regimen was protease inhibitor plus two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (55.4%). With the protease inhibitor plus integrase inhibitor (PI + INI) ART, 69% less risk of poor virological response was obtained [p = .019 (confidence interval 95% 0.117-0.825)]. Conclusions: In patients with HIV and the M184V mutation, the PI + INI ART has shown a greater decrease in control VL and, thus, a good virological response. The risk factors associated with a poor virological response were the delay between genotyping and change of therapy, high levels of initial VL, and poor adherence among the participants. / Revisión por pares

Bakgrund: Kunskap kring hantering av blodsmittade patienter är avgörande för hur sjuksköterskor bemöter dem. Att ta hand om patienter som har en blodsmitta är en del av vårdyrket. Patienter som lever med blodsmitta upplever att de blir diskriminerade inom vården vilket påverkar hälsan negativt. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie var att beskriva sjuksköterskors attityder till att vårda patienter med blodsmitta. Metod: En beskrivande litteraturstudie som innehåller elva vetenskapliga artiklar som hittades i databasen PubMed. Huvudresultat: Resultatet redovisas genom fyra huvudrubriker, Betydelsen av sjuksköterskans kunskap och utbildning, Sjuksköterskors osäkerhet i vårdandet, Stigmatisering mot patienter med blodsmitta och Sjuksköterskans värdegrund. Resultatet visar att sjuksköterskor ofta känner att de saknar kunskap och utbildning att vårda patienter som lever med blodsmitta. Bristande kunskap och utbildning bidrar till en negativ inställning till vård av denna patientgrupp. Slutsats: Denna studie kan hjälpa till att identifiera brister i hanteringen av blodsmittade patienter och därmed bidra till att alla får vård på lika villkor. Genom att identifiera brister kan utbildningsprogram utformas till syfte att skapa en personcentrerad vård. / Background: Knowledge of the management of blood-infected patients is crucial for how nurses treat them. Caring for patients who carry a blood-infection is part of the nursing profession. Patients who live with a blood-infection experience that they are discriminated against in healthcare, which has a negative effect on health. Aim: The aim with this study was to describe nurses’ attitude towards caring for patients with blood-infected. Method: A descriptive literature study that contains eleven scientific articles that was found in the database PubMed. Results: The results are reported through four main headings, The meaning of nurse's knowledge and education, Nurses' insecurity in care, Stigmatization towards patients with blood-infection and The Nurse's values. The results show that nurses often feel that they have a deficient knowledge and training regarding the management of blood-infected patients. Lack of knowledge and education contributes to a negative attitude towards caring for this patient group. Conclusion: This study can help identify shortcomings in the management of blood-infected patients and therefore help ensure that everyone receives care on equal terms. By identifying shortcomings, training programs can be designed with the aim of creating a person-centered care.

Social networks play an important role in disseminating a piece of information in a population. Companies advertising a newly launched product, movie promotion, political campaigns, social awareness campaigns by governments, charity campaigns by NGOs and crowd funding campaigns by entrepreneurs are a few examples where an entity is interested in disseminating a piece of information in a target population, possibly under resource constraints. In this thesis we model information diffusion in a population using various epidemic models and study optimal campaigning strategies to maximize the reach of information. In the different problems considered in this thesis, information epidemics are modeled as the Susceptible-Infected, Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible, Susceptible-Infected-Recovered and Maki Thompson epidemic processes; however, we modify the models to incorporate the intervention made by the campaigner to enhance information propagation. Direct recruitment of individuals as spreaders and providing word-of-mouth incentives to the spreaders are considered as two intervention strategies (controls) to enhance the speed of information propagation. These controls can be implemented by placing advertisements in the mass media, announcing referral/cash back rewards for introducing friends to a product or service being advertised etc. In the different problems considered in this thesis, social contacts are modeled with varying levels of complexity---population is homogeneously mixed or follows heterogeneous mixing. The solutions to the problems which consider homogeneous mixing of individuals identify the most important periods in the campaign duration which should be allocated more resources to maximize the reach of the message, depending on the system parameters of the epidemic model (e.g., epidemics with high and low virulence). When a heterogeneous model is considered, apart from this, the solution identifies the important classes of individuals which should be allocated more resources depending upon the network considered (e.g. Erdos-Renyi, scale-free) and model parameters. These classes may be carved out based on various centrality measures in the network. If multiple strategies are available for campaigning, the solution also identifies the relative importance of the strategies depending on the network type. We study variants of the optimal campaigning problem where we optimize different objective functions. For some of the formulated problems, we discuss the existence and uniqueness of the solution. Sometimes our formulations call for novel techniques to prove the existence of a solution.

This study using a quantitative, descriptive design with a questionnaire investigated cultural, religious and social factors that might impact on ARV treatment in HIV/AIDS-infected women in Botswana. The study found that the majority never missed any doses, a few missed doses once or twice, and a small minority missed more than three times. The respondents’ perception of cultural influence on treatment of HIV/AIDS in women revealed that the majority (70%) believe culture has an influence on the treatment. Social factors also impacted on ARV adherence. A few of the respondents indicated that side effects and the number of pills prevented ARV medication adherence. The main reason for non-adherence, however, was forgetfulness. There had been an improvement in the majority of the respondents’ health status and quality of life. Maximizing adherence is essential. Providers and patients both have responsibilities in this regard. / Health Studies / M.A.(Health Studies)