Sex differences in communication and the construction of HIV/AIDS

This paper reports analyses of sex differences in knowledge, attitudes, and behavior related to HIV/AIDS and communication about HIV I'AIDS in the heterosexual college population. Men and women differed in their assessments of risk to HIV infection for various behaviors; in each case women perceived greater risk. Women were more favorable than men regarding talking about AIDS and attitudes about condom use. Men reported a greater number of sexual partners for the previous five years than did women. Men, more often than women, appear to have changed their behavior in a direction of greater risk. Only two sex differences were found for prevention‐related behaviors. First, men more often reported having purchased a condom. However, no sex differences were found for actual condom use. Second, as reported in previous studies, women were more likely to engage in AIDS‐related talk with a sexual partner. Because of their many differences, men and women need to be targeted as separate audiences for HIV/AIDS prevention. Further, because women have emerged as the most rapidly growing group at risk for HIV infection and because women appear to be more willing than men to implement HIV/AIDS prevention in their relationships, they should be considered a primary audience for HIV/AIDS‐prevention programs designed for influencing the behavior of heterosexual couples.     

Museums of Malawi Case Study: Tackling HIV/AIDS by Creating Awareness of Rights and Cultural Practices

The HIV/AIDS epidemic has greatly impacted the lives of many Malawians. In 2007, one million people in a population of 13 million were infected with the HIV virus. There are 91,000 cases of children living with HIV and over 550,000 orphans who lost their parents to this disease (UNAIDS 2008 Report on Global AIDS Epidemic). At the Museums of Malawi, many staff have died of HIV/AIDS‐related illnesses. The gravity of this matter prompted the Museums of Malawi to join hands with other stakeholders in a concerted effort to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The Museums of Malawi has found that the most significant reasons for HIV transmission are specific cultural beliefs and practices that abuse people’s rights, and that are as dangerous as the disease itself. The museum created activities that look at these beliefs in order to achieve behavioral change among youth and adults during the program.     

Malevolence,stigma, and social distance: Maximizing intergroup differences in HIV/AIDS discourse

This study examined the intergroup language used by young heterosexual Australians in conversations about HIV/AIDS and safe sex. Sixty male and 72 female heterosexuals participated in four‐person facilitated conversations (same‐sex or mixed‐sex) about HIV/AIDS and safe sex, which were recorded and transcribed. We focused on extracts concerning strangers or malevolent individuals who appear to be group members, along with extracts involving foreign national groups. Discourse analysis showed that groups at lower levels of social distance were constructed mainly in terms of individual responsibility. At moderate social distance, stereotypes were more negative, but sub‐typing was common, whereas at the highest levels, people were constructed entirely in intergroup terms. The findings of this study suggest that HTV prevention programs should make reference to all salient outgroups, so as to neutralize communicative strategies that strengthen intergroup boundaries as a means of reducing perceived personal threat of HIV infection.     

Complementary and alternative medicine as represented in the HIV/AIDS body of knowledge: a bibliometric analysis

Although the HIV/AIDS epidemic began more than twenty years ago, there still is no cure for the disease and no vaccine to prevent infection. As with the general population, individuals with HIV/AIDS have sought care using a variety of traditional and nontraditional approaches. The popularity of complementary and alternative interventions among the HIV/AIDS community continues. To understand better the distribution of the HIV/AIDS body of knowledge concerning complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), this study sought to (1) examine the literature specific to the use of complementary and alternative medicine where HIV/AIDS is concerned to determine publication patterns; (2) determine the degree of overlap among bibliographic citation databases that index the literature concerning the use of CAM practices in treating HIV/AIDS; and (3) facilitate access to this body of literature.     

Information and communication: a library’s local response to HIV/AIDS in Zambia

Objective: To document and describe the University of Zambia Medical library’s responses to the fight against HIV/AIDS in Zambia. Methods: The methodology adopted was a case study approach combined with an analysis of the literature such as annual reports and official documents. This was augmented by personal reflections of the author having worked at the Medical Library. Results: The University of Zambia Medical library has over the years instituted and implemented HIV/AIDS information provision programmes that include the provision of information in various formats ‐‐ print or electronic and, in addition, capacity building in HIV/AIDS information literacy skills. Conclusion: A library’s social responsibility calls for it to be part of national responses to crises that arise in society. As HIV/AIDS has affected every aspect of Zambian society prevention, treatment, care and support there is an understanding that the library’s role should be using the cri tical and strategic resource at its disposal – information ‐‐ as part of their contribution to the fight against HIV/AIDS. In this context, libraries should source, collect, organize and disseminate information on HIV/AIDS in a way that is easily accessible to researchers, HIV/AIDS programme implementation agencies and the ordinary public.     

Journalism,Moral Panic and the Public Interest

The public interest is commonly presumed to be fundamental to the practice of journalism. Journalists and the media organizations for which they work routinely assume that they are able to identify what is in the public interest, and act accordingly. This article explores notions of the public interest in the context of a particular case study, that of Sharleen Spiteri, an HIV-positive sex worker who appeared on the Australian national current affairs television programme 60 Minutes in 1989 and admitted that she sometimes had unprotected sex with clients. As a consequence of the ensuing wave of moral panic, she was forcibly detained in a locked AIDS ward and a mental asylum. After she was released she was kept under 24-hour surveillance for the remaining 15 years of her life. In 2010, the authors of this article produced a radio documentary for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation about Sharleen Spiteri's case. The authors argue that her story raises some important and difficult questions for the ethical practice of journalism. They analyse the role of journalists and politicians involved in Sharleen's case, and show that their belief that they were acting in the public interest played into well-established historical narratives linking sex workers with disease and dissolution, with disastrous consequences for Sharleen herself. The authors argue that a more reflexive and responsible conception of the public interest for journalists requires them to pay more careful attention to the voices and perspectives of people who are excluded from participation in the public sphere.     

Role of Indian public libraries to increase the awareness of the community on HIV/AIDS

Abstract

Today Indian society is at high risk. AIDS, the most devastating disease humankind has ever faced, has become a conflagration on the Indian subcontinent and nearly 5.134 million people in the country are estimated to be HIV-positive. There is a perceived need for public libraries to provide necessary information to make the community aware of the threat of HIV/AIDS. Today's challenge is to reinvent the public libraries to respond to community needs. This paper explores the avenues created by ICT-enabled networking processes in providing HIV/AIDS information to the unprivileged population in India. It concludes with a number of recommendations that are intended to address the core problems and thereby improve the overall situation.     

Knowledge and Attitude of Women to HIV/AIDS in a Farming Community in Southwestern Nigeria: Challenges for Public Libraries

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one of the major setbacks to the achievement of the 2015 millennium development targets in Africa, generally, and Nigeria, in particular, where it is the leading cause of death. In terms of age and gender distribution, the most severely affected are sexually active females in their most economically reproductive years. A greater percentage of the Nigerian population lives in rural areas where there is low access to health information. This study assesses the knowledge level and attitudes of women in a farming community to HIV/AIDS, and suggests intervention strategies by the public libraries to bridge the knowledge gap on HIV/AIDS. This article suggests that public libraries as custodians of knowledge should play a significant role in transmitting information about how to prevent and control HIV/AIDS.     

Information needs and information-seeking behaviors of HIV positive men and women

Although a portion of the HIV/AIDS population has long been active in seeking out information in support of self-care, little work has been done to examine closely the information needs and information-seeking behaviors of this community relative to the provision of medical reference. This exploratory study provides insight into the types of information HIV positive individuals seek and the resources they consult in gathering information to bolster health and well-being. Having a better understanding of the information needs and information-seeking behaviors of individuals with HIV/AIDS will facilitate information intervention for this community.     

HIV/AIDS and nutrition: a bibliometric analysis

Diet and nutrition are directly involved in patient care protocols that reflect a shift in the treatment of HIV/AIDS as a chronic disease, with an emphasis on quality of life and expanded life trajectory. Research concerning HIV/AIDS and nutrition is multidisciplinary, yielding study results that appear in a wide variety of scholarly journals. The purpose of this research was to employ bibliometric techniques to evaluate the body of literature specific to HIV/AIDS and nutrition as well as to determine content overlap among major bibliographic citation databases.     

“You Have to be Positive.” Social Support Processes of an Online Support Group for Men Living with HIV

Over the past decade, improved treatments have helped people with AIDS enjoy a state of restored health and greater hope for long-term survival. Because of these changes, social support is an even more important resource for those battling HIV/AIDS. One source for social support is a support group, which offers social and emotional resources to meet the needs of its members. The online support group investigated in this study serves gay men with HIV/AIDS and requires that they talk only about positive aspects of life. To understand the implications this rule has for support processes, a thematic analysis was conducted to determine how this group constructs social support. Rules and resources aimed at the group goal of positivity help develop a unique speech community. Implications for social support, support groups, and the Internet are discussed.     

Insights into the diffusion of HIV/AIDS information in higher education institutions in South Africa

According to the UNAIDS [(1999). Young people and HIV/AIDS. UNAIDS Briefing Paper. Geneva: UNAIDS] report it is widely agreed that in the absence of a cure, only preventative measures brought about by education and customized information exchanges can mitigate the impacts of the disease. The purpose of the study was to review the framework, nature and scope of HIV/AIDS information communication strategies employed by higher education institutions in South Africa. Both qualitative and quantitative research design and methodologies were employed largely through survey, observation and document analysis. The findings reveal that firstly, HIV/AIDS information is provided through a variety of communication tools, channels and strategies. Secondly, in most instances, HIV/AIDS messages are not context appropriate and are unsuitable for academic constituencies most of whom are knowledgeable about the disease. Thirdly, there is a lack of synergy in dealing with HIV/AIDS in the higher education sector in South Africa. Other hidden issues involved in the communication of HIV/AIDS information have been highlighted. Lastly, an institutional framework appropriate for inter-institutional exchanges of HIV/AIDS information is suggested.     

Subscribing to Governmental Rationality: HBO and the AIDS Epidemic

Between 1987 and 2013, HBO produced or distributed over twenty HIV/AIDS programs. These films trace a cultural shift from an early focus on AIDS as a public health issue to be dealt with through individual “safe-sex” practices and ethical citizenship to a later focus on AIDS as a global pandemic where the explicit strategy becomes a reliance on non-state actors to combat AIDS. This article argues that HBO's HIV/AIDS films are embedded within a cultural approach to AIDS that relies on governmental logics and neoliberal solutions – not direct action, but directing action.     

Evolution in the body of HIV nursing knowledge

The role nurses occupy in the care of the HIV/AIDS affected has evolved over time. This evolution is exhibited in the body of nursing knowledge and is recorded in the published literature. The purpose of this study was to describe landmarks in the evolution of nursing's involvement in the provision of care to HIV/AIDS patients and to examine the body of nursing knowledge relative to HIV/AIDS, employing bibliometric analytic techniques. It was expected that the literature would grow in both breadth and depth concurrent with nursing's increased role in caring for those infected, or at risk for infection, with HIV.     

HIV/AIDS Outreach: Curriculum Development and Skills Training to Health and Information Professionals

With funding from the National Library of Medicine HIV/AIDS Community Information Outreach Program (ACIOP), librarians at the University of Florida Health Sciences Libraries partnered with university and community groups to facilitate collaboration, develop new information resources, develop information-seeking skills, and raise general awareness surrounding HIV/AIDS risks, prevention, and treatment. This article describes the skills development elements of the project, including development and implementation of an HIV/AIDS information resource curriculum for health care providers, social services professionals, and public librarians within the project’s partner organizations.     

HIV/AIDS Information in Public Libraries

Abstract

Despite well-publicized advances in the development of antiretroviral therapies, HIV infection remains an incurable condition. Worldwide, the disease threatens to gravely impact a wide range of developing nations, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia and South America. In the United States, the poor and particularly women of color are at great, and increasing, risk for infection. Public libraries, as trusted public institutions for the dissemination of information, can continue to play an important role in promoting public health information surrounding HIV/AIDS prevention and education. Public libraries are not immune, however, to the political and value-driven public discourse surrounding HIV infection. Through carefully identifying the issues, taking a nonjudgmental service approach, and building collaborations with community based organizations, public libraries can become common ground for providing proactive prevention-focused information services. This article examines the current state of epidemic HIV/AIDS infection, reviews the literature on public library responses, and identifies highly select consumer health and biomedical monographic, serial, audio-visual and Web-based HIV/AIDS information tools.     

HIV/AIDS reference questions in an AIDS service organization special library

Librarians in many venues may anticipate a wide range of reference questions related to HIV and AIDS. Information on HIV/ AIDS is now available in medical, academic, and public libraries and on the Internet, and ranges from the most complex science to the most private disclosures about personal behavior. In this article, the 913 reference questions asked between May 2002 and August 2004 in a special library in a mid-western community-based AIDS service organization are described and analyzed.     

The empowerment dilemma: The dialectic of emancipation and control in staff/client interaction at shelters for battered women

This study investigated the dialectic of emancipation and control in the relationship between staff and clients at shelters for battered women. Accounts from shelter workers indicated that the power structure of their relationship with clients is characterized by four properties: a circumstantial dichotomy, contrasting experiences, asymmetrical roles, and resource control. Additionally, the workers discussed four contradictory aspects of the shelter worker/shelter client relationship (their relationship with clients, the shelter environment, the clients' options, and the amount of time the client spends at the shelter) which reflected the existence of the dialectic of emancipation and control in their interaction with clients. Findings are discussed in terms of domestic shelters, shelter worker/shelter client relationships, and dialectical theory.