Working with Groups → HIV and AIDS in emergencies

HIV and AIDS in emergencies

Displacement, vulnerability, and food insecurity resulting from disasters, increase the risk of HIV infection, and increase vulnerability among those already affected.

Disasters can impact on HIV and AIDS through:

  • Increasing the risk of transmission;
  • Reducing peoples' resilience to cope with the disease and / or the disaster;
  • Disrupting access to health and HIV and AIDS related treatment and services;
  • Population movements and presence of foreign workers.

 

Vulnerability to HIV and AIDS

Who is vulnerable?

 What contributes to their vulnerability?
  • Mobile populations (refugees and IDPs
  • Returnees
  • Children without primary care givers
  • Female and child headed households
  • Host communities
  • Male and female sex workers and injecting drug users
  • Humanitarian workers
  • Military or peace- keeping personnel
  • Long distance truck drivers
  • Overseas and internal migrant workers


 

 

Refer to www.aidsandemergencies.org
 
 
  • Post disaster and conflict situations lead to increased sexual gender based violence (SGBV) and a subsequent increase in the spread of HIV.
  • HIV prevalence increases with population movements and displacement. This trend can continue into longer term recovery through returning populations.
  • Foreign workers engage in unprotected sex due to unfamiliarity with their surroundings and the removal of social / cultural constraints.
  • Loss of livelihoods, separation, poverty and the disruption of family and social support structures lead women, girls or boys into commercial sex work or unsafe sex practices for money, food, or protection.
  • Displaced children are highly vulnerable due to exposure to new social, cultural, livelihood situations.
  • Inadequate or disrupted health services prevent access to condoms, post exposure prophylaxis and screened blood, increasing the risk of transmission.
  • Deterioration in public health, poor sanitation and limited access to clean water increase the incidence of disease and opportunistic infections.

 Impact of disasters on those affected by HIV and AIDS

  • HIV undermines the resilience and coping capacity of communities, making them more susceptible to disaster and slower to recover.
  • People living with HIV and AIDS (PLHIV), and carers, are at high risk of malnutrition, illness, and poverty following disaster as they have fewer livelihood opportunities inadequate access to food and nutrition, and greater susceptibility to disease.
  • People living with HIV and AIDS (PLHIV) are highly vulnerable to stigma and discrimination, particularly when displaced, so confidentiality is essential.
  • Inadequate or disrupted health services undermine treatment, medication for opportunistic infections, and home based or palliative care. Disrupted access to anti-retrovirals (ARVs) can lead to rapid progression of HIV/ AIDS.
  • National and local capacities (government, NGO, community) already weakened by the disaster and facing increased demands, have limited capacity to provide care and support for those living with HIV and AIDS.

 

This page was last updated on 24 June 2011