Stigma Among Women With HIV in Vietnam

NCT05357118 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: 22-1191R21TW012018
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 91
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Women living with HIV/AIDS (WLHA) bear a higher level of stigma because of their socio-cultural vulnerabilities. Women are more likely to internalize social stigma and produce a sense of shame and loss of self-worth, which results in a delay in health service seeking and compromised health outcomes. In Vietnam, stigma towards WLHA is exacerbated by the deeply rooted female inferiority. However, research targeting WLHA is generally lacking. We propose this study to address stigma among WLHA and explore the use of virtual support system in WLHA's service engagement in Vietnam. The 2-year study will proceed in two phases in Hanoi, Vietnam. Phase 1 will be formative studies, including in-depth interviews with 30 WLHA and focus groups with 20 service providers and community stakeholders. This phase aims to investigate the cultural and contextual background of HIV and gender roles in Vietnam and to identify effective strategies to support and engage WLHA in healthcare. These formative findings will inform the development of an intervention to be pilot tested in the next phase. Phase 2 will be a 6-month intervention pilot with 90 WLHA using an online/offline hybrid approach. During Month 1 of the pilot, WLHA will participate in an in-person section to form mutual support groups and prepare for the following online components. During Month 2-4 of the pilot, study investigators will teach WLHA a series of empowerment strategies to cope with stigma and utilize social support to seek healthcare services. These skills will be taught via interactive online group activities. During Month 4-6, WLHA will self-administer the online groups without the intervention of study investigators. WLHA's multidimensional stigma measures, mental health burdens, and service use self-efficacy will be assessed at baseline, month 4, and month 6. Progress data of the intervention will be documented to inform the feasibility and sustainability of the online support approach. Acceptability data and feedback will be collected from the WLHA participants upon completion of the 6-month pilot period.

Conditions

Stigma, Social; HIV Infections; Discrimination, Sex

Keywords

Vietnam; Stigma; HIV; Women

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change in stigma

  The change in a scale to measure how WLHA's awareness of HIV stigma, agreement with stigma, coping with stigma. The items of the stigma measure are adopted based on Corrigan PW's Toolkit for Evaluating Programs Meant to Erase the Stigma of Mental Illness. (2008)

  Baseline to 6-month

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• Change in social support

  Baseline to 6-month

• Change in self-efficacy to tackle stigma and seek healthcare/social services

  Baseline to 6-month

• Change in access to care

  Baseline to 6-month

• Change in health status

  Baseline to 6-month

Study Arms (1)

One arm

EXPERIMENTAL

The study is an one-arm pre- and post-design.

Behavioral: Suppress Stigma, Support Services

Interventions

Suppress Stigma, Support Services BEHAVIORAL

Women living with HIV/AIDS (WLHA) will attend an initial group preparation session in Month 1 to form a network with peers and prepare for the following online support groups. During Month 2-4, study investigators will teach cognitive, emotional, and behavioral strategies to cope with stigma and utilize social support to seek healthcare services through online group activities. During Month 4-6, WLHA will self-administer the online support groups without the intervention of study investigators

One arm

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Gender Eligibility Details: Born as a female
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• aged 18 or above
• being female at birth and currently
• being HIV-seropositive
• currently living in Hanoi and having no plan to move out of the area in the next six months
• have the cognitive capacity to participate in study activities as judged by the study recruiter

You may not qualify if:

• have been involved in intervention development activities
• inability to give informed consent

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of California, Los Angeles: lead
• Hanoi Medical University: collaborator
• Fogarty International Center of the National Institute of Health: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Hanoi Medical University

Hanoi, Vietnam

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Social Stigma; HIV Infections; Sexism

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Social Behavior; Behavior; Blood-Borne Infections; Communicable Diseases; Infections; Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Viral; Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Lentivirus Infections; Retroviridae Infections; RNA Virus Infections; Virus Diseases; Genital Diseases; Urogenital Diseases; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes; Immune System Diseases; Prejudice; Social Discrimination

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Assistant Professor-in-Residence

Model Details: Women living with HIV/AIDS (WLHA) will attend an initial group preparation session in Month 1 to form a network with peers and prepare for the following online support groups. During Month 2-4, study investigators will teach cognitive, emotional, and behavioral strategies to cope with stigma and utilize social support to seek healthcare services through online group activities. During Month 4-6, WLHA will self-administer the online support groups without the intervention of study investigators

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 6, 2022
• First Posted: May 2, 2022
• Study Start: September 30, 2023
• Primary Completion: September 30, 2023
• Study Completion: May 18, 2024
• Last Updated: April 2, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

VN (1)