Depression and coping strategies among Vietnamese women living with HIV

A qualitative study

Bibliographic Data

ID15540400
AuthorsNia M Bhadra (Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, corresponding author), R B Hershow (0000-0002-8492-3747, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Tran Viet Ha (0000-0002-8549-4761), Brian W Pence (0000-0001-7321-9538, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Nguyen Vu Tuyet, Vivian F Go (0000-0003-4828-6880, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Year2020
Volume15
Issue7
Pages1050-1061
Publication date2020-02-28
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueGlobal Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1744-1692 • E-ISSN: 1744-1706
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/17441692.2020.1731566
PMID32107973
OpenAlexW3008574613
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited29

Women living with HIV (WLWH) are more likely to suffer from depression than seronegative women and are also more likely to suffer from depression than men living with HIV. There is limited depression research with WLWH in Vietnam. Twenty in-depth interviews with WLWH were conducted to identify pathways leading to depression and coping strategies for depression. Participants were recruited from an antiretroviral treatment clinic in northern Vietnam. Audio-recorded interviews were transcribed, translated, and analysed to identify key themes. All participants reported sudden loss of social support, debilitating depression, and suicidal ideation in the first six months after HIV diagnosis. While some were able to cope with their status after several months, others continued to struggle due to HIV-related stigma that was perceived as more isolating for WLWH than for men. Women who were able to effectively cope with depression found ways to re-establish connections to family and community. Interventions to improve mental wellbeing should link WLWH to mental health services immediately after diagnosis and address loss of support and stigma, as they contributed to the onset and persistence of depression after HIV diagnosis. Community-level HIV stigma reduction interventions may also help repair broken social bonds and foster new ones

Coping (psychology · Depression (economics · Environmental health · Family medicine · Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV · Mental health · Poison control · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Qualitative research · Social stigma · Social support · Stigma (botany · Suicidal ideation · Suicide prevention · Vietnamese · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · Clinical Psychology · HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions · Medicine · Psychology