Barriers and Facilitators to HIV Testing Among Women
The largest prevention trial of low income at-risk men and women at US sites
funded by the National Institute of Mental Health found that the behavioral
intervention was not able to explain the outcomes of condom use,
knowledge and skills and self-efficacy to initiate safe sex behaviors.
The researchers concluded that unmeasured factors may have influenced the outcomes.
Other studies found that 140 Hispanic women between the ages of 18-44
with higher self-esteem were less likely to worry about acquiring
sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.
Self-esteem and motivation for sexual health were significantly
associated and this lead the women to use condoms.
Stigma was also a concern for these women. The researchers also found medication
side effects and weight gain influences medication adherence.
During the early epidemic of HIV, women and young female adolescents went
highly under diagnosed.
The knowledge of HIV status among women is related
to the barriers to diagnosis and engagement in HIV care.
Barriers included delay in not receiving care, delay in undergoing
treatment, late initiation of highly active antiretroviral therapy
(HAART), mistrust of care providers, substance use.
Women were found to have more barriers to HIV testing than men.
Studies have identified multiple barriers including lack of awareness
and misconceptions related to HIV screening by physicians and
patients, barriers at the facility and legislative levels, costs associated with testing,
and conflicting recommendations concerning the value of routine screening.
Another research team found that culturally specific interventions that are tailored
for Hispanic women have the ability through multiple pathways to prevent HIV infections.
HIV/AIDS Res Treat Open J. 2016; SE(1): S9-S13. doi: 10.17140/HARTOJ-SE-1-102
