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HIV/AIDS

HIV is a virus that multiplies inside of your body and impairs your defenses. This makes it more difficult to fend against common illnesses and bacteria. The final stage of HIV infection is AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). Although there is no cure for HIV, medication can halt or delay its progression. Many patients initially have no symptoms, perhaps not for years or decades. However, some indicators, such as flu-like symptoms, appear soon after HIV infection, can appear. HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention are complicated by several environmental, social, and economic factors that interact to create hurdles and difficulties (Rural Health Information Hub, 2019). Numerous rural communities suffer from poverty, few resources are available, and structural obstacles make it difficult to receive services.

Issues that hinder the prevention of HIV

Many issues hinder the prevention and fight against HIV/AIDS. The issues can be either social, physical, or economic.

1. Social aspects include stigma, privacy, lack of anonymity, and lack of awareness.

2. Physical aspects include lack of services, lack of effective and specialized medical treatment, and cost of treatment.

3. Economic aspects include poverty.

This paper will analyze the issue and causes, prior attempts and deficiencies in addressing the issue, and propose the solution of enhancing global awareness through art (making information about HIV/AIDS more appealing and interesting for a targeted audience).

Possible causes

Social aspects: Many social aspects play a critical role in maintaining HIV/AIDS in society. These factors stem from the people and tend to be innate in some people. How society perceives a certain issue dictates how society will view and embrace the issues. If the perception is negative, they will give a negative shoulder to HIV; if the perception is positive, they will take it on positively. Social issues such as stigma have gone a long way in preventing the combating of HIV. Rural societies tend to be the most arrived areas. If combating and prevention of HIV AIDS is to be successful, the main area of focus needs to be rural areas as it is where numerous factors and steps initiated to combat HIV hit a dead end, hindering the effective fight against HIV.

• Stigma - People living in rural areas may be less reluctant to receive HIV testing and/or treatment due to stigma (Rural Health Information Hub, 2019), which can significantly influence HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention.

• Lack of knowledge - The incidence of HIV in rural areas is not widely known. People in rural regions may be unaware of the HIV/AIDS epidemic as it has traditionally been more severe in urban areas (Rural Health Information Hub, 2019).

Physical aspects or issues are the "tangible" issues, which can be seen and "touched." They are the direct mitigating measures taken against HIV and act as the first response to HIV/AIDS. Most times, physical aspects or issues are the first measures taken by the government and humanitarian groups to help combat the speed of the disease. Provision of health services and specialized medical care is the very first step. However, these measures have not worked out as planned.

Lack of services: It's possible that rural communities won't be able to provide basic services like public transportation and shelters for the homeless because of their low population (Rural Health Information Hub, 2019). People living in remote locations may have a more difficult time accessing HIV/AIDS care because there are fewer options for basic public transportation. In addition, people who are HIV-positive and have low resources, such as people who are homeless, may find it difficult to deal with routine HIV care or to adhere to their HIV treatment plan if there is a shortage of services available.

Absence of specialized service providers: There may be a shortage of HIV/AIDS-trained medical professionals in rural regions (Rural Health Information Hub, 2019). It may be necessary for rural residents to travel considerable distances to find a physician, which can affect their adherence to HIV therapy.

• Cost of treatments: HIV treatment can be pricey for those with low incomes, particularly if uninsured and ineligible for Medicaid (Rural Health Information Hub, 2019).

Economic aspects include the financial aspects that play a role in combating HIV.

Poverty: HIV/AIDS is both a symptom of existing poverty, taking root where livelihoods become unsustainable, and the consequence of the epidemic's unchecked influence on economic and social conditions. HIV/AIDS is both a cause and a consequence of poverty, while poverty is both a cause and a consequence of HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS causes poverty when working-age adults in poor households get ill and require care and treatment since income is lost whenever the earners cannot work anymore, and expenses rise due to medical care costs.

Background and Justification

Prior attempts and previously proposed solutions

Throughout time, various measures have been put in place to halt the spread of AIDS and act as prevention measures. Some of the previously proposed measures and proposed solutions include:

Safe sex: here, people are urged to use condoms to help combat the spread of HIV/AIDS. Latex condoms have long been advocated as the best option to help combat the spread of HIV (Myhre & Sifris, 2022, May 26).

Using PrEP: HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a preventative measure in which a daily dose of HIV drugs, known as antiretrovirals (Myhre & Sifris, 2022, May 26), can minimize the chance of contracting HIV by up to 99 percent.

Preventing mother-to-child prevention: this method encompasses the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission and all phases of pregnancy (Myhre & Sifris, 2022, May 26). The likelihood of transmission is drastically reduced by administering antiretroviral medication to the woman early in her pregnancy. Even if medication is initiated later during pregnancy, the risk remains below 2%.

Avoid Sharing Needles: The prevalence of HIV is high among individuals who inject drugs (PWIDs). According to research, between 20 and 40 percent of PWIDs are infected owing to sharing needles and syringes (Myhre & Sifris, 2022, May 26). Moreover, not just PWIDS are at risk. Their sexual partners could also be at risk, especially if they are uninformed of the drug usage of their spouse.

Deficiencies in the solution paradigm

Education is the most critical factor that needs to be improved in the battle against HIV. Bor and his coauthors conducted a comprehensive analysis of the scientific literature to gain a more in-depth understanding of the current state of TasP knowledge and attitudes on a global scale (Khan, 2021, August 23). After reviewing 72 relevant research, Bor and his coauthors presented three significant findings (Khan, 2021, August 23). There are still huge information and awareness gaps surrounding TasP, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. This is notably the case in countries like Nigeria. Second, the acceptance of TasP as a preventative method increases as more people gain knowledge about the method. There has been a "good effect" on HIV testing due to the transmission of knowledge about TasP (Khan, 2021, August 23), viral suppression, treatment adherence, and a reduction in stigma.

Relationships between providers can sometimes provide obstacles to the effective delivery of services. Based on available money, new organizations are established, and existing organizations expand their operations to fill the gaps in service delivery. However, new service programs frequently overlap with current ones. When resources are scarce, competition for clients and service delivery is likely to escalate. In an examination of federally sponsored HIV primary care providers, grantees reported that provider competition and "turfism" hindered their attempts to enhance care services and sometimes even prevented them from getting additional money.

Newly Proposed Deliverable- education

Deliverable overview.

Enhancing global awareness through art (making information about HIV/AIDS more appealing and interesting for a targeted audience)

Significance to the student. HIV/AIDS is a severe threat to the lives and livelihoods of young people around the globe. This is despite the numerous intervention measures by governments and international stakeholders to raise awareness among young people about the prevention of the virus throughout various venues, especially the mainstream media and seminars (Independent, 2021, February 2). Art is beneficial in breaking down taboos, facilitating discourse about sexuality, and combating HIV/AIDS stigma, which can alter the sexual behavior of communities (Independent, 2021, February 2). Based on such information, meaningful relationships are formed amongst youth from gender, diverse ethnic, and social backgrounds. As a result, this motivates detailed and sincere conversations about the disease among young people.

Target audience: students at high school, college, and university levels are the target audience. 

External dissemination platform: the best platform is through school curriculums, which will enable many students to gain education on HIV in large numbers. Further websites targeting adolescents and youth and youth forums will be employed to help reach the target audience.

Proposed length and justification: the art program must run continuously across society. There is no proposed end time for the project. The continuity will ensure that students and young people are continuously educated on HIV/AIDS, which will help them fight against HIV. 

Evaluation

The goal of new deliverable.

The main goal of the new deliverable is to make information about HIV/AIDS more appealing and interesting for a targeted audience.

Success outcome measures.

The best success measure is conducting interviews to evaluate the impact of using art. Factors such as stigma and prevention measures are the two best measures to help assess the impact of art as a solution to help fight HIV. If the level of stigma and awareness of prevention measures increases, a positive impact has been achieved if the reverse is not attained, the measure is a failure. 

Enhancement of global awareness.

Recognizing cultural values and biases will help increase global awareness. Art is unique to each society across the world. Recognizing cultural values and biases will help inform the path that art will take, which will, in turn, help propagate art to help disseminate the intended message. 

Enhancement of global perspective taking.

To help enhance global perspective taking, the best strategy is to organize art events with HIV as a theme. Further events can also be held in communities that will organize art events. This will help go a long way in enhancing the global perspective taking. 

References

Khan , E. (2021, August 23). Gaps in Knowledge of HIV Treatment-as-Prevention Hinder Disease Control | Global Development Policy Center. © 2022 Boston University. Retrieved September 10, 2022, from https://www.bu.edu/gdp/2021/08/23/gaps-in-knowledge-of-hiv-treatment-as-prevention-hinder-disease-control/

Independent, T. (2021, February 2). Adoption of Visual Arts in the fight against HIV and Aids. The Independent Uganda: Retrieved September 10, 2022, from https://www.independent.co.ug/adoption-of-visual-arts-in-the-fight-against-hiv-and-aids/

Myhre , J., & Sifris, D. (2022, May 26). 8 Simple Steps to Prevent HIV. Verywell Health. Retrieved September 10, 2022, from https://www.verywellhealth.com/hiv-prevention-plan-to-reduce-risk-49177

Rural Health Information Hub. (2019). Barriers to HIV/AIDS Care in Rural Communities - RHIhub Toolkit. Retrieved September 10, 2022, from https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/toolkits/hiv-aids/1/rural-barriers