Discrimination against People Living with HIV in Healthcare Settings

As long as stigma and discrimination are present in the society, both the global and
local initiatives will continue to fail to meet the objectives of reducing new infections,
increasing voluntary counselling and testing, having better linkages to care, and
increasing the number of PLHIV whose viral load is suppressed.

Tackling stigma and discrimination stands in the centre of all AAE’sactivities; a special attention is dedicated to it in healthcare settings, as discrimination in this area may undoubtedly have the most severe negative effects on the state of health of PLHIV and their overall quality of life. UNAIDS and the WHO indicates fear of stigma and discrimination as the main reason why people are reluctant to get tested, disclose their HIV status, and start ART.

This study covers 11 countries of Europe and Central Asia: Czechia,
Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Kyrgyzstan, North Macedonia, Portugal,
Spain, and the United Kingdom, which were chosen because they are considered representative of the epidemiological, political, geographical, and economic diversity of Europe and Central Asia.