According to World Health Organization, 4.5 million babies are born still each year worldwide. Having a still birth is a devastating experience for a woman, and little is understood about the life-long impact of this loss. A new study will provide women the opportunity to share their stories, and in doing so, help other women with their bereavement.
* Women often find themselves in a caregiver role. This is especially difficult when the person they are caring for is very ill. However, respecting and nurturing the spiritual side of an individual is an important part of the healing process.
* The project team for the new provincial Women’s Health Institute, which was announced recently in Ontario, has been busy meeting with individuals and groups across the province
HIV/AIDS — What Makes Women Vulnerable?
HIV/AIDS no longer dominates the headlines. Once understood by the media and by the public as a devastating and fatal disease, the perception has shifted to it as a manageable — albeit chronic — condition. It’s easy to imagine things are under control.
This is far from the case, unfortunately. While some people are living longer — and often better — with the disease, AIDS is still killing millions, and is making countless others very sick. What’s worse, new findings show that worldwide cases HIV and AIDS are increasing — and women are the most vulnerable.
According to UNAIDS, 37.2 million adults are living with HIV worldwide. Nearly fifty percent of these are women. The highest incidence is among adolescents and young adults. A recent study released by Toronto Public Health showed that the incidence of women with HIV/AIDS has increased dramatically over the past decade in Toronto, where the growing urban population puts it at greater risk than the rest of the country.
About a quarter of new cases in Ontario are women. The Canadian figures are dramatic. Among whites the ratio is 82 percent male to 18 percent female; among Aboriginals, the ratio is 53 to 47; and among blacks it is 55 to 45.
Women at risk
So why are women so vulnerable? Experts say it’s largely lack of knowledge, insufficient access to prevention services, inability to negotiate safer sex and a lack of appropriate contraceptive methods.
Transmission from men to women is also higher than from women to men. Women have a greater risk of becoming infected during vaginal intercourse than men due to a higher concentration of HIV in semen than in vaginal fluid, the larger surface area of the vagina and cervix, and the fragility of the membranes in these areas. Condoms, when used properly, can be an effective way to control the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). But negotiating condom use may be challenging in some relationships.
Living with HIV/AIDS makes women’s everyday tasks even more challenging.
‘Because she is usually the primary caregiver, HIV/AIDS is just one of the many things to deal with during the day’, said Janet Rowe, executive director of Voices of Positive Women, an Ontario-based advocacy group that focuses on the needs of women living with HIV/AIDS.
‘She has to make sure the kids are fed, that they are going to school, are clothed, have a roof over their head and are healthy. Somewhere in there she may be able to take care of herself…if she can get care.
’ Some women may also be single parents, on a low income, or in an abusive relationship. Some women may turn to selling sex to supplement their income. If they are intravenous drug users, the risk increases further. Thirty percent of infected women will also have another STI.
Changes needed
Rowe believes we will continue to see female rates of HIV/AIDS rise if nothing changes.
‘We need to shift the paradigm on safer sex. If you don’t control the tool, you are not on an even playing field,’ she said. ‘We need a female-controlled method of disease-prevention contraception. The female condom costs too much and is difficult to use.
’ Human testing of microbicides (gels or creams that women could apply before sex) has just begun. Rowe says we may be five years away from being able to prescribe them.
There are many reasons why women have difficulty negotiating safer sex…abuse is one of them. Those who are victims of rape have no choice. Post-exposure treatment is also available for rape victims. In Ontario, there is a move towards standardization of this treatment. Women are offered anti-HIV drugs and are then followed by a province-wide study
Women-focused treatment
Excellent treatment and support are available in many parts of the world, including Canada. However, society still tends to equate the condition with gay men, and many current HIV/AIDS services are aimed predominately at men.
'Unfortunately, we haven’t yet learned enough about how HIV/AIDS and its toxic drugs affect women, their hormonal cycles, fertility or menstruation' said Kim Johnson, the speaker's bureau coordinator with the Toronto People With AIDS Foundation, and the peer network coordinator of Voices of Positive Women.
‘In order to make available effective treatment options, women need to have their needs examined separately from men — both clinically and in a community setting,’ Johnson said.
More emphasis on testing
Women are also often diagnosed with HIV later: perhaps when they apply for life insurance, donate blood, are already sick or find out their newborn is HIV positive. In addition, many doctors do not explore the possibility of HIV infection with their female patients.
Routine testing during pregnancy is currently not practiced everywhere in Canada. In regions where it is practiced, some doctors may not provide pre-and post-counselling
The incidence of mother-to-child HIV transmission has almost doubled globally. Women are not diagnosed and treated in time to avoid it. To decrease the chances of the baby being infected, women in Canada receive anti-HIV drugs during pregnancy and labour and undergo a caesarean section. The baby is given anti-HIV drugs within 72 hours of birth. Statistics show that this lowers the risk of transmission significantly.
Reference: www.womenshealthmatters.ca/index.cfm