Health Care Provider Attitudes and Beliefs About People Living with HIV: Initial Validation of the Health Care Provider HIV/AIDS Stigma Scale (HPASS)

Abstract

HIV stigma is a pressing concern for people living with HIV, and particularly when it is perpetuated by health care providers, as it may affect quality of life and access to health care services. The current study describes the development and initial validation of a contextually appropriate HIV stigma scale for health care providers in North America. A ground-up qualitative approach was used to develop the scale, and it was assessed psychometrically with health care trainees across Canada. The measure demonstrates excellent internal consistency reliability and test-retest reliability, as well as convergent and divergent validity. The study supports a tripartite model of HIV stigma consisting of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination. The scale provides a new tool to assess HIV stigma in health care providers and can be used to inform training, intervention and self-evaluation of stigmatizing attitudes, beliefs and behaviors among providers.

HIV-Related Stigma and Overlapping Stigmas Towards People Living With HIV Among Health Care Trainees in Canada

“…In the current study, the total scale demonstrated excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = .94), as did each subscale (Cronbach's alphas = .91, .82, and .92 for prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination, respectively). The scale has demonstrated good test-retest reliability (r = .93, p < .001), convergent validity with other measures of HIV-related stigma, and divergent validity with a scale of empathy associated with HIV (Wagner et al, 2014).…”

“…Two hundred and thirty-four medical and nursing students from across Canada participated in the study (see Wagner, Hart, McShane, Margolese, & Girard, 2014, for a detailed description of the study). They were recruited to participate in an online study to examine health care trainee attitudes and beliefs about HIV and related variables.…”

“…The Health Care Provider HIV/AIDS Stigma Scale (HPASS; Wagner et al, 2014) is a 30-item measure assessed on a 6-point Likert scale. The HPASS has three subscales: prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination.…”

Resources to address stigma related to sexuality, substance use and sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections

“…This resource was adapted from the previously validated Healthcare provider HIV/AIDS stigma scale (14) in partnership with Dr. Anne Wagner, who led the research team that devised the original stigma scale, to incorporate a broader range of STBBIs and reflect the continual shift towards a more integrated approach to STBBIs (15). The revised tool was psychometrically validated following two rounds of pilot testing with 144 service providers from across Canada.…”

Attitudes of First and Fourth Year Nursing Students to HIV/AIDS: A Comparative Study

“…Usually because of the behaviors that do not comply with the values and beliefs shared by the society, the patients that possess the disease have difficulty accessing their healthcare rights for they are being judged by the society. [3][4][5] People with HIV / AIDS suffer from stigmatization, obstacles to participation in work, education, social and cultural life. Patients may experience physical and emotional harm with discrimination, embarrassment, mockery, deprivation of right, loss of roles / relationships.…”