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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Sai Subhasree Raghavan, PhD, Division of Infectious Diseases, Harlem Hospital Center of Columbia University, 3101 A, 506 Lenox Avenue, New York 10032, New York, NY 10032, 212 939 2313, ssr12@columbia.edu and Purnima Madhivanan, MBBS, School of Public Health, University of California, 140 Warren Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720.
India has second highest cases in the world with 3.86 million next to South Africa (1).If effective prevention efforts are not implemented, the World Bank warns that India could have 37 million cases by the year 2005 (2). One in every four cases occurs in women (1), who are often married with a single partner, who become infected through their sexual activity outside the marriage (4). Gender based inequalities over lapping with poverty, illiteracy, and social inequalities are the driving force behind HIV epidemic in India (3). Social norms that doesn’t allow women to acquire knowledge on safe sex practices and negotiation skills to when and how to have sex makes Indian women vulnerable to HIV and STD infections. Compounding women’s vulnerability is high illiteracy rate, lower wages, higher unemployment, lack of decision-making power, lack of property rights and lack of freedom to access health care. Gender-based violence is another important contributing factor. A woman is molested every 26 minutes, a rape occurs every 34 minutes and an incident of sexual harassment occurs every 42 minutes(5). Gender based inequalities in spending on health care result in lack of access to voluntary testing and counseling and medical care when they are infected. Stigma and discrimination at home, work place, in medical facilities and in their own communities are additional impediments in accessing care and support (6). Additional challenges including legal, property and job inheritance issues, lack of shelter and economic support when they are widowed makes their living with HIV an endless array of struggles.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Women and HIV/AIDS, International
Related Web page: www.saathii.org
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.