S tatistics mask a deeper truth about HIV which points to important

S tatistics mask a deeper truth about
HIV which points to important
issues about inequality, vulnerability and
how best to fight the disease. The global
AIDS epidemic is composed of many
small, often overlapping epidemics that
reflect different patterns of risk and
vulnerability. The burden of HIV does not
fall evenly across the world but
concentrates its impact on regions
and populations, exacerbating the
impact of poverty, marginalization and
human rights violations. As a result,
within countries some groups are
disproportionately affected by HIV.
The term ‘key population’ is used to refer
to populations who are significant to the
dynamics of the epidemic in a particular
context. Depending on the country
context and the rate of prevalence, key
populations may include men who have
sex with men, sex workers, injecting
drug users and prisoners. In most
countries, these populations tend to
have a higher prevalence of HIV
infection than that within the general
population because they engage in
behaviours that put them at greater risk
of infection and they are among the
most marginalized and discriminated
against populations in society.
At the same time, the lack of resources
devoted to HIV prevention, treatment
and care for these populations are
disproportional to the number of people
living with HIV from these groups or the
impact of HIV on them. This is a serious
mismanagement of resources and a
human rights violation for individuals
from these groups.
Understanding risk and vulnerability
Understanding the difference between
risk and vulnerability is vital for people
involved in the HIV response.
HIV risk can be defined as the
probability of an individual becoming
infected by HIV either through his or her
own actions, knowingly or not, or via
another person’s actions. For example,
injecting drugs using contaminated
needles or having unprotected sex with
multiple partners increases a person’s
risk of HIV infection.