Peer-group support intervention improves the psychosocial well-being

a b s t r a c t Accumulating evidence suggests that AIDS orphanhood status is accompanied by increased levels of psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, intense guilt, shame, and anger. However, few studies have examined the possible reduction of psychological distress in AIDS orphans through the help of interventions that promote well-being. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of a schoolbased peer-group support intervention combined with periodic somatic health assessments and treatment on the psychosocial well-being of AIDS orphans in the Mbarara District of southwestern Uganda. In a cluster randomized controlled design, 326 AIDS orphans aged 10-15 years were assigned to either peer-group support intervention combined with monthly somatic healthcare (n ¼ 159) or control group (n ¼ 167) for follow-up assessment. Baseline and 10 week follow-up psychological assessments were conducted in both groups using self-administered Beck Youth Inventories. Complete data were available for 298 orphans. After adjusting for baseline scores, follow-up scores for the intervention group in comparison with controls showed significant improvement in depression, anger, and anxiety but not for self-concept. This study demonstrated that peer-group support intervention decreased psychological distress, particularly symptoms of depression, anxiety and anger. Thus, the use of peer-group support interventions should be incorporated into existing school health programs

Integration of HIV and cervical cancer screening perceptions and preferences of communities in Uganda

Background: Despite the fact that HIV-positive women carry an increased risk of developing cervical cancer (CC) in comparison with HIV-negative women, HIV and CC screening programs in many developing countries have remained unintegrated. The objective of this study is to explore perceptions and preferences of community members in Uganda, including women, men, and village health teams, regarding the integration of HIV and CC screening services in a single-visit approach. Methods: This qualitative study was conducted in three districts in Uganda. Data were collected through focus group discussions with women and village health teams, and individual interviews with men. Respondents were purposely selected from among those linked to three CC clinics in the three districts. The content analysis method was used to analyze the data. Results: Three themes emerged from the data, namely appreciating the benefits of integration, worrying about the challenges of integration, and preferences for integration. The women endorsed the benefits. However, there were worries that integration would prolong the waiting time at the health facility and induce tiredness in both the healthcare providers and the women. There were also fears of being found positive for both HIV and CC and the consequences such as stress, self-isolation, and social conflicts. Participants, particularly the women, considered the challenges of screening integration to be manageable by, for example, taking a day off work to visit the hospital, delegating house chores to other family members, or taking a packed lunch on visiting the hospital. Conclusions: The community members in Uganda perceive the benefits of HIV and CC screening integration to outweigh the challenges, and expect that the challenges can be minimized or managed by the women. Therefore, when considering HIV and CC screening integration, it is important to not only recognize the benefits but also take into consideration the perceived challenges and preferences of community members

Integration of HIV and cervical cancer screening perceptions of healthcare providers and policy makers in Uganda

Background: HIV-positive women have an increased risk of developing cervical cancer (CC) compared to the HIV-negative women. Despite this, HIV and CC screening programs in many developing countries have remained disintegrated. Therefore, the objective of the study was to explore perceptions of healthcare providers (HCP) and policy makers (PM) about integration of HIV and CC screening services in Uganda. Methods: This was a qualitative study conducted among 16 participants comprising of 12 healthcare providers and 4 policy makers in Uganda. Data were collected through individual interviews. Participants were purposively selected from different level of health facilities with clinics for HIV and CC screening services. Content analysis method was used to analyze the data. Results: Three themes emerged from the data, namely appreciating benefits of integration, worrying about the limited health system capacity and potential consequences of integration and feeling optimistic about integration under improved health system conditions. The benefits embraced the women - particularly the HIV-positive women- but also men, healthcare providers and the health system or the government. There were worries that HIV stigma and shortage of healthcare workers would affect the effective delivery of the integrated program. Conclusion: Integration of HIV and CC screening can offer manifold benefits to all stakeholders in the health system, more so to the women. However, its feasibility in developing countries such as Uganda will most likely be hampered by weak and inefficient health systems. Therefore, when considering HIV and CC screening integration, it is important not to only recognize the benefits but also take into account resources requirements for addressing the existing weaknesses and inefficiencies in the health systems such as limited infrastructure, insufficient drugs and supplies, inadequate and poorly motivated healthcare workers

Peer-group support intervention improves the psychosocial well-being of AIDS orphans: Cluster randomized trial

Accumulating evidence suggests that AIDS orphanhood status is accompanied by increased levels of psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, intense guilt, shame, and anger. However, few studies have examined the possible reduction of psychological distress in AIDS orphans through the help of interventions that promote well-being. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of a school-based peer-group support intervention combined with periodic somatic health assessments and treatment on the psychosocial well-being of AIDS orphans in the Mbarara District of southwestern Uganda. In a cluster randomized controlled design, 326 AIDS orphans aged 10-15 years were assigned to either peer-group support intervention combined with monthly somatic healthcare (n = 159) or control group (n 167) for follow-up assessment. Baseline and 10 week follow-up psychological assessments were conducted in both groups using self-administered Beck Youth Inventories. Complete data were available for 298 orphans. After adjusting for baseline scores, follow-up scores for the intervention group in comparison with controls showed significant improvement in depression, anger, and anxiety but not for self-concept. This study demonstrated that peer-group support intervention decreased psychological distress, particularly symptoms of depression, anxiety and anger. Thus, the use of peer-group support interventions should be incorporated into existing school health programs. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Peer-group support intervention improves the psychosocial well-being of AIDS orphans: Cluster randomized trial

Accumulating evidence suggests that AIDS orphanhood status is accompanied by increased levels of psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, intense guilt, shame, and anger. However, few studies have examined the possible reduction of psychological distress in AIDS orphans through the help of interventions that promote well-being. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of a school-based peer-group support intervention combined with periodic somatic health assessments and treatment on the psychosocial well-being of AIDS orphans in the Mbarara District of southwestern Uganda. In a cluster randomized controlled design, 326 AIDS orphans aged 10-15 years were assigned to either peer-group support intervention combined with monthly somatic healthcare (n = 159) or control group (n = 167) for follow-up assessment. Baseline and 10 week follow-up psychological assessments were conducted in both groups using self-administered Beck Youth Inventories. Complete data were available for 298 orphans. After adjusting for baseline scores, follow-up scores for the intervention group in comparison with controls showed significant improvement in depression, anger, and anxiety but not for self-concept. This study demonstrated that peer-group support intervention decreased psychological distress, particularly symptoms of depression, anxiety and anger. Thus, the use of peer-group support interventions should be incorporated into existing school health programs.AIDS Orphans Peer-group support Intervention Psychological distress Uganda Schools

Socio-demographic characteristics of the married women living with HIV attending antiretroviral therapy clinic at Kabale regional referral hospital in southwestern Uganda (n = 424, April, 2021).

Socio-demographic characteristics of the married women living with HIV attending antiretroviral therapy clinic at Kabale regional referral hospital in southwestern Uganda (n = 424, April, 2021).</p