The purpose of this study was to identify and categorize stigmas associated with hepatitis C. This article will address the qualitative analysis of participants' written narratives describing stigmatic events. These narratives were in response to a question that incorporated a functional definition of stigma. The sample consisted of 39 participants who completed a survey during support group meetings. Of the participants, 84.6% experienced hepatitis C-related stigma. With the qualitative data saturated, a total of five themes and 16 concepts were found. The idea that ignorance precedes all stigmas was refuted with the finding that some concepts may not involve ignorance, as defined in this study, about hepatitis C. This notion was further applied to existing theories concerning disease-related stigma. The findings in this study expand our current knowledge of the complexity of stigma. Implications for nursing practice will include comprehensive structural and institutional application of policy. Furthermore, population and peer education about hepatitis C and against stigma will be a worthy opponent to the problem at hand.
The purpose of this study was to examine hepatitis C-related stigma within a population of liver disease support group attendees. In total, 39 participants completed a quantitative/qualitative survey during support group meetings. This article reports on the quantitative data. Data collected included the source and location of stigma and stigma's effects on health-seeking behavior and disclosure practices (DISCs). Of the participants, 84.6% experienced hepatitis C-related stigma. All who were Hispanic or older than 65 years experienced stigma. The most common source of stigma was healthcare professionals. More participants reported a decrease in DISCs than in health-seeking behavior. A small portion of participants reported increases in both. Those persons who were stigmatized by healthcare professionals were significantly more likely to subsequently decrease their health-seeking behavior. Of those who reported decreases in DISCs after being stigmatized, more than half (54.5%) were stigmatized by healthcare professionals. The most common location for stigmatization was in the home setting. The findings hold important implications for learning needs of healthcare professionals.
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