Enacting support within church communities for people living with HIV or AIDS

Abstract

Social support is important in managing HIV and AIDS. Some people living with HIV or AIDS (PLWHA) have sought support from churches, despite their reputation for stigmatising PLWHA. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 PLWHA and 21 church leaders to identify ways that churches can effectively enact support for PLWHA through improved communication about HIV, AIDS, and related issues. Church leaders also were asked about the institutional barriers to enacting support for PLWHA. Implementing these strategies consistently and holistically will require intentional efforts to address the barriers within church organisations to create environments that are welcoming to and supportive of PLWHA.

Keywords:

• HIV
• AIDS
• social support
• church
• religion
• spirituality
• communication

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Dale Brashers, John Caughlin, Travis Dixon, Shevon Harvey, and Marian Huhman for their feedback and guidance on this study. I also would like to thank my research assistants – Erin Schreiber and Amy Fitzjarrald – for their help with data entry. I would like to acknowledge the National Institutes of Mental Health (F31MH085585) for supporting this research. Finally, I wish to thank the men and women who participated in this study.