Living with HIV and AIDS: Perspectives of women and men in Fiji

Type Journal Article - Report prepared for the Fiji National Health Research Committee, Ministry of Health
Title Living with HIV and AIDS: Perspectives of women and men in Fiji
Author(s)
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2011
URL http://www.aidsdatahub.org/sites/default/files/documents/Living_with_HIV_and_AIDS_Perspectives_of_Wo​men_and_Men_in_Fiji.pdf
Abstract
This report presents the results of the study entitled Discourses and Representations of HIV in Fiji and their Impact on the Experience of People Living with HIV and AIDS. This study was conducted in collaboration with the Reproductive Health Clinics of Suva, Lautoka and Labasa and the Fiji Network for People Living with HIV and AIDS (FJN+) between November 2007 and December 2008. The necessary approvals and authorizations had been previously obtained from the Fiji National Health Research Committee, the Fiji National Research Ethics Review Committee (FNRERC Reference Number 009-2007), the Ministry of Education and the Immigration Department. This research was funded by a doctoral scholarship from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (752-2006-1062).

Archival research, HIV document collection, participant observation, focus groups and interviews were among the methods and approaches employed in the context of this study. Several social actors (health workers, AIDS advocates, church representatives, etc.) were also invited to participate. However, it is the life stories of 28 women and men living with HIV that constitute the core of this study and of this report. Analysing life stories is a privileged way of examining social and cultural realities as experienced by the individuals. Collecting and presenting the life stories of people living with HIV is also an important way of showing solidarity with people affected by the infection.

This report first provides information on the objectives and methods of this research as it was originally conceived and eventually conducted. It then presents the results of this study as they emerged from the collection of the life stories of the 28 women and men. To conclude, the report deals with implications and recommendations for the control, prevention and treatment of HIV in Fiji. In this, improving the quality of life of people living with HIV and addressing stigma and discrimination should always be a priority.

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