"I found that I was well and strong": Women's motivations for remaining on ART under Option B+ in Malawi.

Phiri, Nozgechi; Haas, Andreas D; Msukwa, Malango T; Tenthani, Lyson; Keiser, Olivia; Tal, Kali (2018). "I found that I was well and strong": Women's motivations for remaining on ART under Option B+ in Malawi. PLoS ONE, 13(6), e0197854. Public Library of Science 10.1371/journal.pone.0197854

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Most Malawian women who start ART under Option B+ are still in care three years later, a higher than average adherence rate for life-threatening chronic disease treatments, worldwide (50%). We asked 75 Malawian on ART their motivations for remaining in treatment, and what barriers they overcame. Focus groups and interviews included 75 women on ART for 6+ months, at 12 health facilities. Four main motivations for continuing ART emerged: 1) evidence that ART improved their own and their children's health; 2) strong desire to be healthy and keep their children healthy; 3) treatment was socially supported; 4) HIV/ART counselling effectively showed benefits of ART and told women what to expect. Women surmounted the following barriers: 1) stigma; 2) health care system; 3) economic; 4) side effects. Women stayed on ART because they believed it works. Future interventions should focus on emphasizing ART's effectiveness, along with other services they provide.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > Pre-clinic Human Medicine > Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM)
04 Faculty of Medicine > Medical Education > Institute of General Practice and Primary Care (BIHAM)

UniBE Contributor:

Haas, Andreas, Tenthani, Lyson Nemoni, Keiser, Olivia, Tal, Kali

Subjects:

600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 360 Social problems & social services

ISSN:

1932-6203

Publisher:

Public Library of Science

Language:

English

Submitter:

Doris Kopp Heim

Date Deposited:

12 Jun 2018 13:58

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 15:14

Publisher DOI:

10.1371/journal.pone.0197854

PubMed ID:

29874247

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.117170

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/117170

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