husbands working in other places whilst for others, it was specifically due to HIVdiagnosis:“After diagnosis, aaah….sexual activity also slower.”(Male, 40yrs, University education, DU)“I was very long time have not slept with him….because….almost two tothree years…. He was in Kuching”(Female, 37yrs, Primary education, Infected Partner)“Seldom….not feeling [after HIV diagnosis]”(Female, 43yrs, Primary education, Infected Partner)One DU, however, reported improved sexual activity because he now was no longer ondrugs and has recently married; his drug dependence caused him to lose interest in sex.In fact, it was evident that HIV-infection does not deter marriage prospects entirely. Onewoman among the participants had remarried a HIV-uninfected man after the death of herHIV-infected husband and two HIV-infected male participants had married HIV-infectedwomen. In all cases, the prospective spouse had knowledge of the partner’s HIV status.Healthcare issuesAll the FGD participants have access to regular healthcare, primarily in Governmenthospitals, including the refugees. Not all of the participants are on medication, however.As mentioned previously, the FGD participants were all recruited via NGOs, and theUNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) in the case of refugees,hence, they have assistance in obtaining healthcare. The majority receive medical carefrom Government hospitals; either under the Ministry of Health or University hospitals,either fully or partially subsidised.With regards to the quality of care, most participants were very happy, and even movedby, the care they have received, or are receiving, from the medical specialists in hospitals:“The doctors in GH, I really salute them! They know how to be sensitive,even to your feelings. They will come and look around but they’ll neverdisinfect their hands in front of you…..to avoid you feeling ostracised.”(Male, 44yrs, Upper secondary education, DU)“Sejak saya jumpa Kak M [Registered Nurse in Infectious Diseases] andDoktor M [Infectious Disease specialist]…..mereka ini lah yang berisemangat.”(“Since I met Sister M, Doctor M…they are the ones who give mecourage.”)(Female, 39yrs, Lower secondary education, Infected partner)“I pergi hospital dekat [mentions hospital location], I get counsellingfrom…[mentions name] ahh….then from there I masuk balik hospital. Diabagi I ubat…tak….ahhh….bagi I penerangan yang lebih tentang benda ini.And then, the doctor yang…yang merawat saya, doctor yang bagi banyak34
semangat, macam [mentions doctors’ names]…..ahhh doktor doktor tu, diabagi semangat.”(“I went to hospital at [mentions hospital location], I got counsellingfrom…[mentions name] ahh…then, from there, I was re-admitted intohospital. He/she gave me drugs…..not…ahhh….give me more informationabout <strong>this</strong> thing. And then, the doctors….who treated me, doctors whogave me lots of courage, like [mentions doctors’ names]….ahhh….thosedoctors gave me courage.”)(Transgender, 53yrs, Upper secondary education, SW)“Dia [doctors] akan cakap banyak kali lah….suruh kita…..nasihat kitamakan ubat betul betul…..jaga pemakanan. Kalau tidak, dulu sekejap jebuat pemeriksaan….sekarang OK.”(“They [doctors] will say many times….tell us…..advise us to eat medicineproperly…..take care of nutrition. Before, they would only make a quickexamination, now OK.”)(Transgender, 32yrs, Lower secondary education, Infected Partner)“When I was first…when my doctor first saw me, he was a very decentdoctor, you know - Doctor [mentions name). So, he was tellingme….straight to conclusion….said, don’t take <strong>this</strong> as a punishment fromGod.”(Female, 54yrs, Lower secondary education, SW)In Kuching, participants appeared to be happy with both doctors and nurses as theirhealthcare providers:“Dari dulu sampai sekarang,,,,misi [nurses] bertukar tukar pun semuabagus.”(“From before till now…..even the nurses keep changing, all are good.”)(Female, 39yrs, Lower secondary education, Infected Partner)“They are very good, they give us support. Only the people here knowabout us, not the people outside.”(Female, 34yrs, Primary education, Infected Partner)There were a few participants who had grievances. Two participants spoke of doctorswho shattered them emotionally by estimating their survival:“Lepas tu, seorang doctor tu, dia sahkan saya boleh hidup dalam tigabulan. Mulalah saya fikiran ni….betul ke Mak? Boleh dalam masa…..ooooh… .beritahu hidup tiga bulan. Tak sempat nak membersarkan anakanak! Tapi saya fikir juga…sampai sekarang ni…saya jumpa doctortu…..saya lagi terkilanlah – takut. ….yang ada semangat, tak adasemangat terus.”35
- Page 2 and 3: Table of ContentsPROJECT TEAM 5ACKN
- Page 4 and 5: Information received at the time of
- Page 6 and 7: AcknowledgementsThis research is fu
- Page 9: The main findings from the qualitat
- Page 14 and 15: school or work, transport costs for
- Page 16 and 17: is that the large majority of women
- Page 18 and 19: In fact, special surveys conducted
- Page 20 and 21: ObjectivesThe specific objectives o
- Page 22 and 23: have been rejected by their immedia
- Page 24 and 25: eport) that his/her healthcare (or
- Page 26 and 27: CommunityKnowledge/awareness of HIV
- Page 28 and 29: Framework of analysisA descriptive
- Page 30 and 31: urban and a rural community. In all
- Page 32 and 33: medication, the physical health com
- Page 36 and 37: (“And then, this doctor, he/she v
- Page 38 and 39: their food. Nurses and their attend
- Page 40 and 41: “Because we take drugs….no time
- Page 42 and 43: The same claim to 100% condom use w
- Page 44 and 45: in asking them to use condoms, even
- Page 46 and 47: “Normally…..normally, memang ma
- Page 48 and 49: (“But I continued using at that t
- Page 50 and 51: “Buat pada permulaannya, saya mem
- Page 52 and 53: However, not all experiences with d
- Page 54 and 55: yang amat sangat. Tak pernah I rasa
- Page 56 and 57: long term fears and anxieties. The
- Page 58 and 59: “The first time I heard from the
- Page 60 and 61: handset, I too, have handset. Some
- Page 62 and 63: have been turning to God since and
- Page 64 and 65: felt I’m indecent. But, at one ti
- Page 66 and 67: would certainly want to continue wo
- Page 68 and 69: (Transgender, 53 yrs, Upper seconda
- Page 70 and 71: “Sometimes I didn’t get enough
- Page 72 and 73: positively portray people living wi
- Page 74 and 75: “After my diagnosis...I’ll pay
- Page 76 and 77: not know or might not want to be bo
- Page 78 and 79: (UNAIDS 2005).(UNAIDS 2000):The fac
- Page 80 and 81: “…bawak saya pergi hospital. An
- Page 82 and 83: erpindah ke tempat lain makin lama.
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pada HIV itu, dia nampak penagih. S
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(Male, 49yrs, University education,
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However this association with the n
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“…..depends on who is the perso
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(“I …my experience society will
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(“Can…can marry, no problem. Bu
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Harm Reduction programmeSome urban
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(“In my opinion such campaign sta
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Table 2aDistribution of Respondents
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female sex workers (seven out of 13
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NO. OF LIVING PARENTSNobody 7 1 1 2
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tested in drug rehabilitation cente
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GroupsDUHetero-SexuallyInfectedMenT
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y the Ministry of Health (74.2%) or
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Child CareYes, often 0 0 0 1 0 1 0
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GroupsDUHetero-SexuallyInfectedMenT
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Figure 5: Percentage of Respondents
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GroupsTable 12aEmotional Problems E
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Stigmatization and how it has affec
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GroupsTable 15How They Cope With Th
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Table 18Percentage Of Respondents W
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esponsible for their families. As m
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In this study, it took more effort
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eing transgender and sex worker whe
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denies them social and economic opp
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working towards their future, who c
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ReferencesAidsmeds.com (2006). Curr
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Sen G, George A, Ostlin P (2002). E
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Annex II: FGD Guide for PLHIV Group
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♦ Spouse: marital/sexual relation
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I. Attitudes and Perceptions relate
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I. HIV/AIDS Knowledge‣ What did y
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Annex V: Rapid Needs Assessment Que
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Types of support or responsibilityM
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Please tick (√)one onlyIf yes,ple
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more help would be useful for you i
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Annex VI: Ethics Approval Letter157