Malawian pregnant women opt out of HIV test for fear of stigma

Many pregnant women in Malawi choose not to undergo HIV testing, despite the promise of free anti-retroviral (ARVs) drugs, because of the social stigma surrounding the virus.

In May 2004, Malawi began a five-year, $196 million programme to provide ARVs to HIV-positive people nationwide at no cost. The programme is funded by a grant from the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

As part of the programme, many prenatal clinics in Malawi offer HIV testing for pregnant women, and women who refuse are offered the test again before delivery. Many hospitals then give HIV-positive women the ARV nevirapine to prevent vertical transmission of the virus.

However, many women are refusing to be tested because they fear their husbands or community members will shun them. Some women fear that their HIV test results might be revealed when HIV prevalence statistics are published for the country, even though the tests are confidential.

UNAIDS estimates that Malawi has an HIV/AIDS prevalence of 14 per cent and that about 84,000 Malawians died of AIDS-related causes in 2003.

Kaiser Network 18/May/05

SOURCE: IPPF News