Quality of Life of People Living with HIV in Australia: The Role of Stigma, Social Disconnection and Mental Health.

Mendonca, CJ; Newton-John, TRO; Alperstein, DM; Begley, K; Hennessy, RM; Bulsara, SM

Quality of Life of People Living with HIV in Australia: The Role of Stigma, Social Disconnection and Mental Health.

Mendonca, CJ Newton-John, TRO Alperstein, DM Begley, K Hennessy, RM Bulsara, SM

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Publisher:: SPRINGER/PLENUM PUBLISHERS
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: AIDS Behav, 2022
Issue Date:: 2022-07-13

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Mendonca, CJ
dc.contributor.author	Newton-John, TRO
dc.contributor.author	Alperstein, DM
dc.contributor.author	Begley, K
dc.contributor.author	Hennessy, RM
dc.contributor.author	Bulsara, SM
dc.date.accessioned	2022-08-30T02:02:02Z
dc.date.available	2022-07-05
dc.date.available	2022-08-30T02:02:02Z
dc.date.issued	2022-07-13
dc.identifier.citation	AIDS Behav, 2022
dc.identifier.issn	1090-7165
dc.identifier.issn	1573-3254
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/161090
dc.description.abstract	HIV is a manageable chronic illness, due to advances in biomedical management. However, many people living with HIV (PLHIV) continue to experience psychosocial challenges, which have been associated with poorer quality of life (QoL). This study aimed to explore how psychosocial factors contributed to the QoL of PLHIV in Australia; specifically, the relationship between HIV-related stigma, social connectedness, mental health, and QoL. Participants were 122 PLHIV attending The Albion Centre (a tertiary HIV clinic in Sydney, Australia), who completed questionnaires which measured HIV-related stigma, social support, mental health symptomology and QoL. Results indicated that HIV-related stigma predicted poorer QoL, as did mental health symptomology. Conversely, social connectedness improved QoL. Additionally, social connectedness was found to mediate the relationship between HIV-related stigma and QoL, whereas the hypothesized moderating role of mental health symptomology on this model was not significant. These findings provide insight into the impact of psychosocial factors on QoL, offering practitioners various points of clinical intervention.
dc.format	Print-Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	SPRINGER/PLENUM PUBLISHERS
dc.relation.ispartof	AIDS Behav
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1007/s10461-022-03790-7
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	1117 Public Health and Health Services, 1607 Social Work
dc.subject.classification	Public Health
dc.title	Quality of Life of People Living with HIV in Australia: The Role of Stigma, Social Disconnection and Mental Health.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.location.activity	United States
utslib.for	1117 Public Health and Health Services
utslib.for	1607 Social Work
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CHT - Health Technologies
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health/Graduate School of Health
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health/Graduate School of Health/GSH.Clinical Psychology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Centre for Health Technologies (CHT)
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.date.updated	2022-08-30T02:01:59Z
pubs.publication-status	Published online

Abstract:

HIV is a manageable chronic illness, due to advances in biomedical management. However, many people living with HIV (PLHIV) continue to experience psychosocial challenges, which have been associated with poorer quality of life (QoL). This study aimed to explore how psychosocial factors contributed to the QoL of PLHIV in Australia; specifically, the relationship between HIV-related stigma, social connectedness, mental health, and QoL. Participants were 122 PLHIV attending The Albion Centre (a tertiary HIV clinic in Sydney, Australia), who completed questionnaires which measured HIV-related stigma, social support, mental health symptomology and QoL. Results indicated that HIV-related stigma predicted poorer QoL, as did mental health symptomology. Conversely, social connectedness improved QoL. Additionally, social connectedness was found to mediate the relationship between HIV-related stigma and QoL, whereas the hypothesized moderating role of mental health symptomology on this model was not significant. These findings provide insight into the impact of psychosocial factors on QoL, offering practitioners various points of clinical intervention.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/161090