Nelson Varas-Díaz
Biographic Data
| ID | 3685252 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Nelson Varas-Díaz |
| GIVEN NAMES | Nelson |
| FAMILY NAME | Varas-Díaz |
| SIGNATURE | VARAS-DÍAZ N |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Puerto Rico |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 20 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 43 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 20 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2003 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Energy insecurity and health among older adults
This article explores the impact of energy insecurity on chronic disease management among older adults (≥ 50 years) in rural areas of Puerto Rico. It documents their lived experiences during power outages and assesses the role of community-driven solar energy initiatives led by the community-based organization Casa Pueblo in enhancing health resilience in a disaster-prone region. An exploratory-descriptive qualitative approach was employed, incor…
Results of a workshop intervention trial to reduce HIV and intersectional stigma among sexual and gender minorities and healthcare workers in the Dominican Republic
Eliminating stigmas that harm sexual and gender minorities (SGM) with HIV is necessary to end the epidemic; however, few validated stigma-reducing interventions for healthcare settings exist, and even fewer have been evaluated in Spanish-speaking contexts. Finding Respect and Ending Stigma around HIV (FRESH) is a healthcare setting stigma-reduction intervention that was adapted and tested to address HIV and intersectional stigmas that harm SGM wi…
Stigmas experienced by sexual and gender minority people with HIV in the Dominican Republic
BACKGROUND: As part of a study to test the feasibility and acceptability of the Finding Respect and Ending Stigma around HIV (FRESH) intervention to reduce stigmas and improve HIV viral suppression, our team collected qualitative data from men who have sex with men (MSM) with HIV, transgender women with HIV, and HIV healthcare providers for their perspectives on different stigmas in Dominican Republic healthcare settings. PURPOSE: We aimed to dev…
Extremity, Hope, and Sound in the Colonial Experience
On leaving
Enacted HIV-Related Stigma’s Association with Anxiety & Depression Among People Living with HIV (PLWH) in Florida
Decolonial Reflections in Latin American Metal Music
Latin America’s history is deeply embedded in the experience of coloniality. Still, its history cannot be told without stories of resistance to its colonial experience. This resistance takes many shapes, from armed conflict to the use of the arts, and addresses many consequences of coloniality. We aim to explore how metal music in Latin America has been used to challenge the colonial legacy of the region. Although coloniality has had many implica…
The social context of hormone and silicone injection among Puerto Rican transwomen
This paper draws on ethnographic, qualitative and survey data with transwomen in Puerto Rico to examine the social and political-economic context of lay injection with hormone and silicone - common practices within this community. We describe specific practices of hormone and silicone injection, the actors that govern them, the market for the sale and distribution of syringes and the networks of lay specialists who provide services to a populatio…
Beyond negative attitudes
HIV/AIDS related stigma remains a major global health issue with detrimental consequences for the treatment and health of people with HIV/AIDS (PWHA), especially when manifested by health professionals. Research on HIV/AIDS stigma has successfully documented negative attitudes towards PWHA among health professionals. However, fewer studies have examined how stigma is manifested behaviorally by health professionals during clinical interactions. Th…
Experiences of Violence Among Transgender Women in Puerto Rico
Violence is a public health concern faced on a daily basis by transgender women. Literature has documented how it adversely affects quality of life and health and in some instances leads to homicide. Considering the lack of research documenting the experiences of violence among transgender women, the objective of this article was to explore manifestations of violence among this population in Puerto Rico. The data presented in this article are par…
Trans-Migrations
This research describes the context and health consequences of migration/mobility that accompany the search for gender transitioning procedures among Puerto Rican transgender/transsexual women. We term migration/mobility for gender transitioning trans-migration. We conducted an ethnographic study focusing on trans-migration, including participant observation and semi-structured interviews with 39 transgender/transsexual women in Puerto Rico. Our …
The role of emotions in the reduction of HIV/Aids stigma among physicians in training
Scientific literature has systematically documented the negative effects of social stigma for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). HIV/AIDS stigma has the potential to negatively impact self-care strategies for those already affected, and simultaneously hinder prevention efforts to deter the emergence of new infections. When health professionals manifest these negative attitudes access to quality health-care and prevention strategies can be serio…
Validating the Factor Structure of the Brief Sense of Community Scale With a Musical Community in Puerto Rico
My Body, My Stigma
AIDS related stigma continues to impact the lives of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) negatively. Although the consequences of stigmatization have been widely documented, certain areas of study need to be further addressed in order to better understand their implications for PLWHA; such is the case of the perceptions of the bodys role in AIDS stigma. A qualitative study was implemented including 30 in-depth interviews of PLWHA in Puerto Rico i…
Qualitative Contributions to a Randomized Controlled Trial Addressing HIV/Aids-Stigma in Medical Students
Specialized training for healthcare professionals (HCP) in order to reduce HIV/AIDS related stigma must be part of a public health model for HIV/AIDS. Tested interventions to reduce HIV/AIDS related stigma among HCP have been mostly absent from these efforts. A qualitative approach was used to assess stigma reduction within a traditional randomized controlled design in order to better understand how our current stigma intervention worked and was …
Experiencias de Hombres Puertorriqueños Ante el Estigma Relacionado con el VIH/Sida (Puerto Rican Men’s Experiences with HIV/Aids Stigma)
Los discursos sobre las masculinidades pueden tener implicaciones adversas sobre la salud de los hombres aumentando su vulnerabilidad a ciertas enfermedades, reduciendo su expectativa de vida y disminuyendo su disposición para solicitar servicios de salud. Estos discursos sociales permean el proceso de estigmatización hacia el VIH/SIDA, afectándolos de manera particular. El objetivo de este estudio fue explorar la intersección entre discursos sob…
Compañeros
Development and validation of a culturally appropriate HIV/Aids Stigma Scale for Puerto Rican health professionals in training
HIV/AIDS stigma continues to be an obstacle for primary and secondary HIV prevention. Its consequences for the lives of people living with the disease have been well documented and continue to be of great concern for health care providers and researchers in the field. These consequences are worsened when such stigma emanates from health professionals, as this can limit access to services. One of the main obstacles for HIV/AIDS stigma research in …
Aids-Related Stigma and Social Interaction
People living with HIV/AIDS are stigmatized. Although personal and social consequences of this stigmatization have been documented, research regarding its impact on social interactions is scarce. Latinos, and Puerto Ricans in particular, have voiced concern regarding AIDS stigma. The authors investigated the key role of social interaction in the process of stigmatization through in-depth, semistructured interviews in a sample of 30 Puerto Ricans …
The Challenge of a Positive Self‐Image in a Colonial Context
Community psychology and the psychology of liberation provide a framework to analyze colonization. Puerto Rico has always been a colony. This experience has direct negative effects on Puerto Ricans' national identities and their emotions. The purpose of this study was to explore emotions associated with Puerto Rican national identities in a sample of 35 high school students. While participating in 4 focus groups, the youths discussed negative and…
Experiences of Violence Among Transgender Women in Puerto Rico
Violence is a public health concern faced on a daily basis by transgender women. Literature has documented how it adversely affects quality of life and health and in some instances leads to homicide. Considering the lack of research documenting the experiences of violence among transgender women, the objective of this article was to explore manifestations of violence among this population in Puerto Rico. The data presented in this article are par…
Aids-Related Stigma and Social Interaction
People living with HIV/AIDS are stigmatized. Although personal and social consequences of this stigmatization have been documented, research regarding its impact on social interactions is scarce. Latinos, and Puerto Ricans in particular, have voiced concern regarding AIDS stigma. The authors investigated the key role of social interaction in the process of stigmatization through in-depth, semistructured interviews in a sample of 30 Puerto Ricans …
On leaving
The Challenge of a Positive Self‐Image in a Colonial Context
Community psychology and the psychology of liberation provide a framework to analyze colonization. Puerto Rico has always been a colony. This experience has direct negative effects on Puerto Ricans' national identities and their emotions. The purpose of this study was to explore emotions associated with Puerto Rican national identities in a sample of 35 high school students. While participating in 4 focus groups, the youths discussed negative and…
Validating the Factor Structure of the Brief Sense of Community Scale With a Musical Community in Puerto Rico
My Body, My Stigma
AIDS related stigma continues to impact the lives of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) negatively. Although the consequences of stigmatization have been widely documented, certain areas of study need to be further addressed in order to better understand their implications for PLWHA; such is the case of the perceptions of the bodys role in AIDS stigma. A qualitative study was implemented including 30 in-depth interviews of PLWHA in Puerto Rico i…
Compañeros
The Challenge of a Positive Self‐Image in a Colonial Context
Community psychology and the psychology of liberation provide a framework to analyze colonization. Puerto Rico has always been a colony. This experience has direct negative effects on Puerto Ricans' national identities and their emotions. The purpose of this study was to explore emotions associated with Puerto Rican national identities in a sample of 35 high school students. While participating in 4 focus groups, the youths discussed negative and…
Aids-Related Stigma and Social Interaction
People living with HIV/AIDS are stigmatized. Although personal and social consequences of this stigmatization have been documented, research regarding its impact on social interactions is scarce. Latinos, and Puerto Ricans in particular, have voiced concern regarding AIDS stigma. The authors investigated the key role of social interaction in the process of stigmatization through in-depth, semistructured interviews in a sample of 30 Puerto Ricans …
Development and validation of a culturally appropriate HIV/Aids Stigma Scale for Puerto Rican health professionals in training
HIV/AIDS stigma continues to be an obstacle for primary and secondary HIV prevention. Its consequences for the lives of people living with the disease have been well documented and continue to be of great concern for health care providers and researchers in the field. These consequences are worsened when such stigma emanates from health professionals, as this can limit access to services. One of the main obstacles for HIV/AIDS stigma research in …
Compañeros
My Body, My Stigma
AIDS related stigma continues to impact the lives of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) negatively. Although the consequences of stigmatization have been widely documented, certain areas of study need to be further addressed in order to better understand their implications for PLWHA; such is the case of the perceptions of the bodys role in AIDS stigma. A qualitative study was implemented including 30 in-depth interviews of PLWHA in Puerto Rico i…
Qualitative Contributions to a Randomized Controlled Trial Addressing HIV/Aids-Stigma in Medical Students
Specialized training for healthcare professionals (HCP) in order to reduce HIV/AIDS related stigma must be part of a public health model for HIV/AIDS. Tested interventions to reduce HIV/AIDS related stigma among HCP have been mostly absent from these efforts. A qualitative approach was used to assess stigma reduction within a traditional randomized controlled design in order to better understand how our current stigma intervention worked and was …
Experiencias de Hombres Puertorriqueños Ante el Estigma Relacionado con el VIH/Sida (Puerto Rican Men’s Experiences with HIV/Aids Stigma)
Los discursos sobre las masculinidades pueden tener implicaciones adversas sobre la salud de los hombres aumentando su vulnerabilidad a ciertas enfermedades, reduciendo su expectativa de vida y disminuyendo su disposición para solicitar servicios de salud. Estos discursos sociales permean el proceso de estigmatización hacia el VIH/SIDA, afectándolos de manera particular. El objetivo de este estudio fue explorar la intersección entre discursos sob…
Trans-Migrations
This research describes the context and health consequences of migration/mobility that accompany the search for gender transitioning procedures among Puerto Rican transgender/transsexual women. We term migration/mobility for gender transitioning trans-migration. We conducted an ethnographic study focusing on trans-migration, including participant observation and semi-structured interviews with 39 transgender/transsexual women in Puerto Rico. Our …
The role of emotions in the reduction of HIV/Aids stigma among physicians in training
Scientific literature has systematically documented the negative effects of social stigma for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). HIV/AIDS stigma has the potential to negatively impact self-care strategies for those already affected, and simultaneously hinder prevention efforts to deter the emergence of new infections. When health professionals manifest these negative attitudes access to quality health-care and prevention strategies can be serio…
Validating the Factor Structure of the Brief Sense of Community Scale With a Musical Community in Puerto Rico
Beyond negative attitudes
HIV/AIDS related stigma remains a major global health issue with detrimental consequences for the treatment and health of people with HIV/AIDS (PWHA), especially when manifested by health professionals. Research on HIV/AIDS stigma has successfully documented negative attitudes towards PWHA among health professionals. However, fewer studies have examined how stigma is manifested behaviorally by health professionals during clinical interactions. Th…
Experiences of Violence Among Transgender Women in Puerto Rico
Violence is a public health concern faced on a daily basis by transgender women. Literature has documented how it adversely affects quality of life and health and in some instances leads to homicide. Considering the lack of research documenting the experiences of violence among transgender women, the objective of this article was to explore manifestations of violence among this population in Puerto Rico. The data presented in this article are par…
The social context of hormone and silicone injection among Puerto Rican transwomen
This paper draws on ethnographic, qualitative and survey data with transwomen in Puerto Rico to examine the social and political-economic context of lay injection with hormone and silicone - common practices within this community. We describe specific practices of hormone and silicone injection, the actors that govern them, the market for the sale and distribution of syringes and the networks of lay specialists who provide services to a populatio…
Decolonial Reflections in Latin American Metal Music
Latin America’s history is deeply embedded in the experience of coloniality. Still, its history cannot be told without stories of resistance to its colonial experience. This resistance takes many shapes, from armed conflict to the use of the arts, and addresses many consequences of coloniality. We aim to explore how metal music in Latin America has been used to challenge the colonial legacy of the region. Although coloniality has had many implica…
Enacted HIV-Related Stigma’s Association with Anxiety & Depression Among People Living with HIV (PLWH) in Florida
On leaving
Extremity, Hope, and Sound in the Colonial Experience
Results of a workshop intervention trial to reduce HIV and intersectional stigma among sexual and gender minorities and healthcare workers in the Dominican Republic
Eliminating stigmas that harm sexual and gender minorities (SGM) with HIV is necessary to end the epidemic; however, few validated stigma-reducing interventions for healthcare settings exist, and even fewer have been evaluated in Spanish-speaking contexts. Finding Respect and Ending Stigma around HIV (FRESH) is a healthcare setting stigma-reduction intervention that was adapted and tested to address HIV and intersectional stigmas that harm SGM wi…
Stigmas experienced by sexual and gender minority people with HIV in the Dominican Republic
BACKGROUND: As part of a study to test the feasibility and acceptability of the Finding Respect and Ending Stigma around HIV (FRESH) intervention to reduce stigmas and improve HIV viral suppression, our team collected qualitative data from men who have sex with men (MSM) with HIV, transgender women with HIV, and HIV healthcare providers for their perspectives on different stigmas in Dominican Republic healthcare settings. PURPOSE: We aimed to dev…
Energy insecurity and health among older adults
This article explores the impact of energy insecurity on chronic disease management among older adults (≥ 50 years) in rural areas of Puerto Rico. It documents their lived experiences during power outages and assesses the role of community-driven solar energy initiatives led by the community-based organization Casa Pueblo in enhancing health resilience in a disaster-prone region. An exploratory-descriptive qualitative approach was employed, incor…
Medicine (15 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Sociology (11 works) · Family medicine (9 works) · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions (9 works) · Psychiatry (9 works) · Political science (8 works) · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (7 works) · Health care (7 works) · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy (7 works)