Preventing stigma and discrimination for children with HIV
Preventing stigma and discrimination for children with HIV
The term ‘stigma’ is often used in the context of HIV. It means ‘sign’, ‘mark of shame’, ‘open wound’ and comes from the Greek ‘puncture’, ‘burn’ or ‘mark’.
Stigma often leads to the exclusion of and discrimination against people. In the case of people with HIV, stigma arises because HIV is associated with sex, illness and death, as well as stigmatized behaviours or cultural taboos in society, such as drug use. Stigma seriously harms people and can lead children, adolescents and adults with HIV to experience feelings of shame, guilt, inferiority and isolation. It can also result in discrimination by individuals or institutions, causing direct harm and violating children's legal rights, for example by denying them services or benefits.
The consequences of stigma and discrimination are quite serious and severe. People living with HIV and those close to them find themselves in a situation of severe moral and psychological stress, subjected to insults, various kinds of unreasonable deprivations and restrictions, and the infringement of their rights. As a result, people with HIV and their families feel they are ‘different’ or ‘bad’; they constantly feel guilty and are forced to deny or hide the fact they are infected for fear of ‘exposure’. In such an environment, it is frightening and difficult to seek help from professionals. This is how alienation from acquaintances, colleagues, friends and the entire society grows. This leads to a deterioration in the quality of life and social disconnect.
Antiretroviral therapy (ART) allows a person with HIV to be practically healthy and live as long as other people. Today, with the availability of drugs, HIV infection has become a chronic, manageable disease, like other chronic diseases such as diabetes. Due to a lack of knowledge about how HIV is transmitted, some people believe they become infected through casual contact with a person living with HIV and, as a result, refuse to interact with them.
Overcoming stigma and discrimination is critical to ensuring that children, adolescents and people living with HIV seek timely medical care, take antiretroviral drugs and adhere to prevention measures. This will significantly reduce the spread of HIV infection.
Remember, HIV is not transmitted by:
- kissing on the lips – the spread of the virus through saliva during kissing has not been confirmed
- mosquitoes and other biting insects – even if the virus gets into a mosquito or other blood-sucking or biting insect, it cannot replicate inside the insect or infect it
- taking part in sports activities with an HIV-positive person
- having everyday contact with friends, at kindergarten, school or at work – no-one can become infected by shaking hands, hugging, using the same toilet or drinking from the same glass with someone who is HIV-positive
- coughs and sneezes – HIV is not airborne
- eating, drinking or using utensils that an HIV-positive person has used.
HIV can be transmitted through:
- the bodily fluids of infected people, such as blood, breast milk, semen and vaginal fluids.
HIV can also be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding.
