Congregation-Based Programs to Address HIV/AIDS: Elements of Successful Implementation

Abstract

Religious organizations may be uniquely positioned to address HIV by offering prevention, treatment, or support services to affected populations, but models of effective congregation-based HIV programs in the literature are scarce. This systematic review distils lessons on successfully implementing congregation HIV efforts. Peer-reviewed articles on congregation-based HIV efforts were reviewed against criteria measuring the extent of collaboration, tailoring to the local context, and use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods. The effectiveness of congregations' efforts and their capacity to overcome barriers to addressing HIV is also assessed. We found that most congregational efforts focused primarily on HIV prevention, were developed in partnerships with outside organizations and tailored to target audiences, and used CBPR methods. A few more comprehensive programs also provided care and support to people with HIV and/or addressed substance use and mental health needs. We also found that congregational barriers such as HIV stigma and lack of understanding HIV's importance were overcome using various strategies including tailoring programs to be respectful of church doctrine and campaigns to inform clergy and congregations. However, efforts to confront stigma directly were rare, suggesting a need for further research.

Public health and church-based constructions of HIV prevention: black Baptist perspective

“…The level of congruence between the abstinence perspectives can facilitate church-led abstinencebased HIV prevention programs, similar to those found in other studies [56,[60][61][62]. However, given that many pastors and leaders conceptualized abstinence more broadly than refraining from sexual activity, church-based HIV prevention strategies may gain traction as part of a broader health promotion context [63].…”

“…Third, public forms of confession, without the appropriate support in place, can fuel stigmatization of PLWHA. Although these concerns exist, other work indicates that creating more openness and connection between PLWHA and congregational leaders and members can facilitate more empathy and decrease further stigma [56,62,64]. These findings would indicate the need for more work around stigma within the church setting to encourage effective support mechanisms for PLWHA.…”

“…sexual risk reduction programs, needle exchange programs for intravenous drug users, use of lower tar cigarettes among smokers, etc.) [62,[65][66][67]. The challenge of depravity is that it operates as a conceptual guide to HIV prevention among churches, but may prove difficult to put into practice.…”

“…Although churches in this study were broadly supportive of prevention interventions within the church, their discussions were targeted at heterosexual partnerships. Given many church views on the parameters for sexual activity, homosexuality remains a difficult area for many black churches to address [33,56,62,64,68,69,70]. This challenge has implications in particular for Black men who have sex with men, who remain at highest risk of HIV [71].…”

Resources and Interest Among Faith Based Organizations for Influenza Vaccination Programs

“…The extant literature documents many FBO-based and -placed programs that have addressed a range of health conditions (e.g., diabetes, HIV, influenza, cardiovascular health, and cancer) in an effort to reach communities that have a history of high morbidity and mortality rates caused by preventable diseases [24, 32, 33]. These faith-based health promotion (FBHP) programs have been successful in improving the health of minorities with evidence of strong participation among members from the design to the implementation of the program [32].…”