Amdie, Gulelat (2005) Gender Based Violence and Risk of HIV Infection among Women Attending VCT Services in Addis Ababa City. Masters thesis, Addis Ababa University.
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Abstract
Background: HIV/AIDS and violence are among the major health problems affecting the lives of millions of women, worldwide. As women get increasingly infected by HIV/AIDS, violence and fear of violence are emerging as important risk factors contributing to their vulnerability to HIV infection, directly through forced sex and indirectly by constraining women’s ability to negotiate safe sexual behavior. Few studies linked men’s use of violence to their own high risk sexual behavior, hence, their own as well as their partner’s risk of HIV infection. Despite the recognition of both problems of violence and HIV in Ethiopia, no study yet assessed gender based violence as a risk factor for women’s HIV infection. Objectives: This study was conducted: to measure the prevalence of various forms of gender based violence, including intimate partner physical and sexual violence and to assess associations between gender-based violence, HIV risk behaviors and HIV infection among women attending voluntary counseling and testing service in Addis Ababa City. Methods: We did a cross sectional study among 743 women attending VCT service at six health institutions in Addis Ababa City. Women who ever engaged in steady heterosexual relationship interviewed and socio-demographic characteristics, risk behavior including multiple male partners, casual partners, transactional sex, condom use and alcohol/Khat use and experience of psychological, physical and sexual violence from intimate partner, childhood sexual assault, forced first intercourse and sexual assault by non partners were assessed using structured questionnaire and linked with women serostatus data. ix RESULT: The prevalence of lifetime intimate partner physical and sexual violence was 54.6% and 41% respectively and 21.8% of women reported experiencing forced sex or rape at their first sex. At the date of interview 35.4% of women tested HIV positive. After adjustment for socio-demographic characteristics and women risk behavior, intimate partner violence was associated with HIV seropositivity. Childhood sexual assault, forced first intercourse and adult sexual assault by non partner were not associated with HIV serostatus. In our study participants, condom use, refusal of sex and demand for monogamous relationship was affected by intimate partner violence. CONCLUSION: in our study participants, women partnered with violent men are at increased risk of HIV infection. Our data support the hypotheses that abusive partners are more likely to have HIV and place their female partners at high risk of HIV. HIV/AIDS intervention need to target male sexual risk taking and need to work at broader and societal level to challenge cultures of violence and male dominant norms of power relations.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA1001 Forensic Medicine. Medical jurisprudence. Legal medicine |
| Divisions: | Africana |
| Depositing User: | Vincent Mpoza |
| Date Deposited: | 28 Jun 2018 14:21 |
| Last Modified: | 28 Jun 2018 14:21 |
| URI: | http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/6194 |
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