Hiv And Aids Problem In Nigeria Health And Social Care Essay

Nigeria ‘s communities are at hazard. The state ‘s population of more than 140 million people, stand foring extraordinary cultural and cultural diverseness, faces an HIV epidemic that could easy whirl out of control. Although the national HIV prevalence rate was cited at 4.4 % in NARHS 2005, this translated into more than 2.9 million people populating with the virus and in demand of services, and support, the 3rd highest load for HIV in the universe.
Nationally, the sero prevalence rates of 4.4 % in 2005 translated to over 2.9 million people populating with the virus. This located Nigeria as holding the 3rd greatest load of people infected with HIV in the universe. Over the last two decennaries, the HIV epidemic in Nigeria has gone from impacting merely a few populations with higher-risk behaviours within a ‘concentrated ‘ epidemic in a few provinces, to a ‘generalized ‘ epidemic in many provinces.
Size of job, how many people infected, cardinal population affected, chief path of transmittal

Like many other states in Africa, HIV is most prevailing among the most productive members of society ( age 25-29 ) , with immature adult females, in peculiar, affected. This besides includes the sexually active age of which unprotected sex is the chief path of transmittal. The epidemic besides had a disproportional impact on adult females and misss in their generative old ages, with 4.9 % of pregnant adult females age 25-29 infected followed by adult females age 20-24 with 4.7 % . More alarming, 3.6 % of adult females age 15-19 were infected every bit good suggestion early sexual introduction.
High and early birthrate among immature adult females across Nigeria ‘s vast and diverse state, suggests that many more kids will besides be infected as a consequence due to rear to child transmittal. Already, more than 1.2 million kids were reported to be infected in 2005. It was estimated that 75,780 new infections would happen among kids less than15 in 2006, with the figure of child-headed families increasing due to the decease of their parents. This indicates a greater demand to associate HIV within generative wellness services to make both adult females and work forces within the general population with more antiphonal household planning, HIV proving and comprehensive PPTCT services. It besides
the demand to beef up holistic intercessions to protect vulnerable immature populations.
Cultural/Social norms in your state and how they impact on the developing state of affairs
They include low hazard perceptual experience, multiple concurrent sexual spouses, informal transactional and intergeneration sex, gender inequalities, stigma and favoritism.
Low hazard perceptual experience
The NARHS 2005 showed that 67 % of Nigerians felt no hazard for HIV and merely 29 % perceived themselves to be at hazard for HIV. Even the IBBS S 2007 showed that MARPs did non perceive themselves as being personally at hazard for HIV, despite high HIV prevalence rates among FSWs, MSM and IDUs. Low hazard for HIV among Nigerians means that they are improbable to take calls for action to forestall HIV earnestly irrespective of high cognition about the virus.
Multiple coincident spouses among work forces and adult females
Underliing multiple coincident partnerships are cultural norms that encourage polygamous relationships, peculiarly among work forces. Common patterns of holding “ indoors and outside married womans ” and social norms that assume “ all work forces are polygamous, promote work forces to hold multiple spouse to show their maleness. Even among formal polygamous relationships, where there is presumed greater protection, work forces and adult females were reportedly non ever remaining within the relationship. Women within polygamous relationship in rural countries were more likely to hold extra-marital personal businesss than among monogamously married adult females as a agency to economic security.
Informal transactional and intergeneration sex
There is a great trade of grounds that many adult females, peculiarly immature adult females, are interchanging sex for gifts, favors, and money outside of a whorehouse scene. Womans who engage in informal transactional relationships are less likely to utilize rubbers than adult females in formal commercial sex counters.
Gender inequalities that influence hazard behavior and bound entree to identify HIV and SRH services
Cultural norm in Nigeria, relegate adult females to a low-level function within matrimony and do it hard for adult females to negociate their right to safe sex or refusal of sex. This is compounded by a important age difference between hubby and married woman, peculiarly in polygamous relationships, which farther makes it hard for immature adult females to entree power in the relationship. Other cultural patterns including married woman heritage, traditional married woman sharing, early and forced matrimony, female Circumcision and sexual cleaning non merely increase adult females ‘s hazard for infection but besides farther undermine adult females ‘s right to autonomy and self finding.
Stigma and favoritism
Stigma related to HIV keeps many people from reacting tp bar, attention and intervention intercessions for HIV. It prevents Nigerians from accessing HIV proving for fright of positive consequences, unwraping their Hiv position to their spouses, and consumption of bar of parent to child transmittal services, including safe eating of new born kids.
How the cognition above might be used to undertake this job and cut down the spread of HIV/AIDS
See urban vs. rural differences in footings of entree to information, key services and literacy.
Reduce reported multiple coincident spouses among all group
Increase consistent and right rubber usage among all work forces and adult females who are sexually active, peculiarly among paid and insouciant spouses.
Increase early STI sensing, intervention and patner presentment.
Critically analyse cultural and gender values and beliefs that put work forces and adult females at hazard in their communities, and beef up male duty in generative wellness.
Reduce reported stigma and favoritism among PLWHA
Reduce reported high hazard cultural patterns.
Reinforce rights of PLWH to hold positive but safe sexual relationships.
Decision
Because of the enormous diverseness within Nigeria ‘s population, it is clear that as contrivers, we need to look carefully at informations within our provinces in doing strategic programs every bit good as acknowledge the diverse needs for be aftering our response. In such a dynamic environment, it is besides of import to see the drivers of Nigeria ‘s epidemic to guarantee that programme contrivers stay in melody with future alterations in the epidemic ‘s growing.
What is clear that there needs to be a co-ordinated, consonant response for bar attempts at all degrees to protect Nigeria ‘s communities? There is much that can be done.
The fact that 95 % of Nigerians still remain HIV free is a enormous chance for bar attempts in our communities. Not merely is our combined strength and committedness key to contending the spread of the epidemic, most of us can make a great trade to forestall ourselves from going infected and fro distributing it to others. It is already apparent that Nigerians communities, at all degrees, have made of import paces to turn to the epidemic.
The freshly launched National Prevention Plan besides strategically [ topographic points bar attempts, and within that, behaviour alteration communications as a precedence country for all spouses and has done much work to construct national consensus on the manner frontward.