Sociocultural Vulnerabilities On The Transmission Of The Hiv / Aids

When it came to differing views between western beliefs and the native point of view, one of the bigger problems was the conflict about contraception and stopping the spread of HIV and AIDS. Southern Africa, were the Dobe Ju’/hoansi subside, has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS in the world. “[T] he world U/N. figures for June 2000 show a seropositive rate among adults of 19.54 percent in Namibia, 19.94 percent in South Africa, and a staggering 35.8 percent in Botswana (Lee 2003: 190).” Because of the epidemic the life expectancy in the area has also drastically dropped. Western medical professionals have made clear to most communities that condoms are the most effective protection from HIV/AIDs. Because of this many western clinics and organizations in Africa distribute condoms to the local people. Regardless of the

In South Africa, AIDS is one of the top causes of death. South Africa has the biggest AIDS/HIV epidemic in the world because of violence against women, poverty, and lack of education. Given this, “Africans account for nearly 70% of those who live with HIV and are dying of AIDS” (Morgenstern, Dr. Michael).

Of the 35 million people living with HIV in the world, 19 million do not know their HIV-positive status. Adolescent girls and young women account for one in four new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa. Women are much more vulnerable to HIV, tuberculosis and hepatitis B and C than the general public. Which is supported by this excerpt from a recent AIDSTAR-One regional report “Women and girls often face discrimination in terms of access to education, employment and healthcare. In this region, men often dominate sexual relationships. As a result, women cannot always practice safer sex even when they know the risks involved. Gender-based violence has been identified as a key driver of HIV transmission in the region.” (Ellsberg, Betron 2010) Many children are affected by the disease in a number of ways: they live with sick parents and relatives in households drained of resources due to the epidemic, and those who have lost parents are less likely to go to school or continue their education. Studies in the regions of Southern Africa and South-East Asia have found HIV/AIDS to negatively impact both the demand for and supply of education. Orphaned children are either pulled out of school or not enrolled at all due to the financial constraints of

In The Invisible Cure, Helen Epstein talks about why HIV/AIDS rate is so high in Africa compared to the rest of the world. Through the book, she gives us an account of the disease and the struggles that many health experts and ordinary Africans went through to understand this disease, and how different African countries approached the same problem differently. Through this paper, I will first address the different ways Uganda and Southern African countries, South Africa and Botswana in particular, dealt with this epidemic, and then explain how we can use what we have learned from these African countries to control outbreaks of communicable disease elsewhere around the world.

The infection rates of HIV in women ages 15-24 is approximately twice as high as men in the same age group. Access to sexual and reproductive health services in Africa is restricted by the gender inequality, stigma and discrimination in the face of high HIV/AIDS prevalence. The study is limited to 2 cities, Uyo and Calabar; major centers of HIV/AIDS response. Interviews reveal that large numbers of people, especially from rural regions, are improperly informed and unaware of the nature of HIV/AIDS. An outreach program displayed HIV prevention messages, but the signs were in English. Access to ART can be difficult. Poorer women cannot afford repeat visits to clinics. Societal issues are present; HIV/AIDS stigma is widespread and families will outcast individuals, denying them of any support. The study also showed a declining confidence in ART as a form of treatment. Respondents reported cases of those on HIV/AIDS treatment who developed further infections. The article displays the need for better education and programs to help people access treatment for

Despite the government’s best efforts to downplay the HIV epidemic that was beginning in South Africa, the disease began to spread throughout the general population in the late 1980s. In 1988, cases of seroconversion started to appear in individuals outside of the MSM community; each year, between 1988 and 1994, saw a doubling of HIV prevalence. As of 1990, the dominant mode of transmission for HIV switched from homosexual to heterosexual intercourse, creating an epidemic among the citizens of South Africa. At the same time, the rate of mother-to-child transmission was on the rise. Throughout the escalation of the HIV epidemic in South Africa, the apartheid government took a hard line stance on HIV and AIDS, calling it a ‘black disease’ and refusing to invest resources to combat the spate. Rather, it continued to use fear tactics and stereotyping to reinforce the ‘typical’ HIV-infected individual, targeting MSM and black populations in country-wide campaigns. Any attempts at preventing the spread of disease were usually thwarted by a lack of infrastructure in the local governments and provinces, with each area attempting a different strategy to combat HIV infection.

The relationship between Aids and African culture can be seen in various ways, values in African culture on marriage, fertility are often seen, however, more recently education and social structure have also played a role culture.

An upsetting pattern has risen inside of the previous couple of years, demonstrating a relentless increment of ladies being contaminated with HIV/AIDS every year. This pattern is particularly conspicuous in sub-Saharan Africa. While the illness is contaminating more ladies than any other time in recent memory and now represents about portion of those living with HIV around

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) has been a major health concern due to its rapid ability to spread and high death rate. Although HIV can be found all around the world, it is most common in Africa. For decades, both sociologist and scientist have struggled to determine the specific causes that led to the wide spread of HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa. The novel The Invisible Cure: Why We Are Losing the Fight Against AIDS in Africa by Helen Epstein tells her journey as a molecular biologist trying to find a cure for HIV across Sub-Saharan Africa. Throughout her journey, Epstein is able to experience the various problems that the majority of people in the African continent face. The problems that Epstein encounters can easily be fixed, but because of the lack of effective government control in most areas they aren’t. Through cultural, political, and social factors, Epstein depicts the roots of the HIV outbreak and the possible cures that can be found within Uganda’s collective efficacy.

This book is a very interesting and detailed analysis of the AIDS epidemic. It is very fact heavy, yet it still manages to entertain the reader and capture his or her attention. This riveting narrative describes pretty much everything you need to know about HIV and AIDS. The ideas behind this compelling work were collectively put together and written by an award-winning AIDS researcher named Daniel Halperin and his coauthor, a Johannesburg Washington Post reporter, Craig Timberg. This exciting story tells you about how Western colonial powers first sparked the flame that would later come to be known as the AIDS crisis. They unfortunately helped to rapidly ignite and spread HIV and AIDS across the world. Tinderbox uses examples from

In Africa, music is an effective form of “edutainment” (Barz & Cohen, 2011, p.185). Barz and Cohen (2011) believes song, with its music and lyrics is the best mode to effectively educate people about the social and physical trauma of HIV/AIDS in Africa (p. 186). Africa has long since been known to be patient zero of the chronic disease known as HIV/AIDS. More importantly, as HIV/AIDS has spread through Africa, and now throughout the world, the industries affected in third world countries, such as Africa, have made situations even direr. More specifically, in South Africa, Lesotho, a mountainous country with an estimated population of 2 million, is suffering from the HIV/AIDS epidemic, “The two million Basotho living there are in the midst of an AIDS epidemic as calamitous as any seen in the region” (Gilden, 2009, p. 117).

In the book Religion and AIDS in Africa by Jenny Trinitapoli and Alexander Wienreb, describe the role that religion plays in interpreting, preventing, and coping with HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. In my view, the variation across countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is due, in part, to different health care and political/government systems. The variation that is seen in healthcare across SSA, where Botswana where programs and access to antiretroviral therapy compared to Zambia. The other variation seen in government influence is that there is a lack of involvement in address HIV/AIDS in South Africa government due to political silence compared to Uganda.

(B1)South Africa has not escaped the rising prevalence and severe impact of HIV/AIDS in relation to women. From an economic and social vantage point, the HIV/AIDS epidemic effects women the hardest, with underprivileged black women the most susceptible to the virus. The theoretical framework of this paper focuses on the intersection between HIV/AIDS, gender inequality and gender violence, and more specifically on certain cultural practices and customs that contribute towards and exacerbate women's subordination and inequality, which in turn increase women's exposure to HIV infection.

AIDS is a relatively new disease that emerged in the 20th century. It has spread to all parts of the world and claims millions of lives each year. One of the countries that has been impacted the most is South Africa. There are 6.1 million people living with HIV and around 370 000 new cases a year, according to the UNAIDS "Global report" from 2013. Though major cities like Jonesburg are vastly developed, much of the country still remains rural, which aids in the spread of the disease. The country has the largest retroviral program in the world but 240 000 people are dying of AIDS related disease each year1. Understanding the social construction and causation of the disease is vital for devising a plan to help combat the spread of HIV in South Africa. The virus has no regards of social status or race. Usually the ones who suffer the most are the poor and the minorities. The poor living conditions, lack of sanitation , sexual habits of the population and the ineffective government efforts up to 1994 exacerbated the problem.

As an upper-middle income country with high spending on healthcare, South Africa has been performing poorly on certain health indicators (as seen in Table 1), with their biggest issue being in the fight against HIV/AIDS (Country and Lending Groups, n.d.). They have one of the highest prevalence rates of HIV/AIDS in the world at 19.1%, and the incidence of new cases is increasing steadily (Milan, 2014; CIA, n.d.). To combat this growing problem President Jacob Zuma launched the largest HIV Counseling and Testing campaign in the world in April 2010 (“Global AIDS”, 2012). In the same year, the country also achieved a significant reduction in the price of antiretroviral medicines (ARVs) (“Global AIDS”, 2012). Despite this progress, these