Brazilian mothers with HIV: experiences with diagnosis and treatment in a human rights based health care system

Abstract

Drawing on in-depth interviews with a group of urban poor HIV positive mothers in Northeastern Brazil, this essay examines their experiences with HIV medical diagnosis and treatment. It argues that strong social and religious networks as well as the Universal HIV treatment program provide Northeastern Brazilian mothers with forms of support that may be absent in other countries. It further suggests that more research be done to determine how particular forms of health care, such as the human rights based approach Brazil has taken to HIV/AIDS, inform patient-provider relationships.

Reproductive aspects and knowledge of family planning among women with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

“…Furthermore, they had learned of their serology during prenatal follow-up. This confirms the need at the national level for diagnosis and treatment with antiretroviral drugs among pregnant women and women of reproductive age (5) , an important indicator for preventing vertical transmission of the virus. It should be mentioned that these same clinical characteristics were also found among African women (14)(15) .…”

“…In this regard, a decrease in morbimortality and an increase in the number of women of reproductive age with HIV/AIDS have been seen, which led to broadening the discussion on family planning (2)(3) , with the aim of maintaining the health of women, safeguarding reproductive rights, avoiding unintended pregnancy and maternal death, and preventing virus spread and vertical transmission (4) . Brazil is renowned for having a national program for HIV/AIDS that guarantees antiretroviral drugs free of charge and sustainably for everyone with HIV/AIDS, including pregnant women, in addition to offering quick testing and serology for detecting HIV in pregnant women (5) . Despite these achievements, there are social inequalities among the regions of Brazil related to virus detection rate in this population.…”

Suporte social de gestantes com HIV: revisão narrativa

“…13 24 Uma das fontes de suporte social instrumental mencionada [16][17][18][19] são os PPTVs, os quais utilizaram uma abordagem centrada na família e dessa forma, contribuíram para divulgação do estado sorológico, e para a adesão aos antirretrovirais. Nesta perspectiva 13,19,23 destaca-se a importância da participação de mulheres em PPTV, as quais realizaram a divulgação de seu diagnóstico e receberam apoio dos seus familiares.…”

“…Participação em programas de prevenção 13,16,[18][19][20][23][24][25][26][27][28] Acolhimento da equipe de saúde 11,16,21,24 Educação em saúde 20 Conforto das condições de saúde 24 Divulgação do estado sorológico [16][17][18][19] Aderir às medidas de profilaxia da TV 11,[16][17][18][19] Repercussões na saúde sexual 13 Deus e a fé 15,24,27 Divulgação do estado sorológico 29 Motivação para aceitar o diagnóstico e o tratamento 24 repercussões na saúde sexual: consideraram-se com maior capacidade para negociar o planejamento familiar, além do uso de preservativo, e solicitar ao companheiro que realizasse o teste de anticorpos do HIV.…”

Human rights education for nurses: An example from Finland

“…[8] More recent articles have described rights-based approaches to health care for those near the end of life, lesbian and bisexual women, isolated patients and elderly people, mothers with HIV, and those in rehabilitation and occupational therapy. [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] The World Health Organization has produced over 400 publications on applications of human rights to health. The Pan American Health Organization, with human rights experts, has developed health and human rights programs that apply to mental health, sexual and reproductive health, adolescent health, and elderly people's health.…”