The Health Policy Project has ended, but work continues under a new USAID five-year project, Health Policy Plus (HP+).
NEWS & VIEWS
March 9, 2015
WASHINGTON, DC—How do we measure HIV stigma, and what is the connection between reduced HIV stigma and improved health outcomes, if any? On March 3, the Office of National AIDS Policy held a conference on this topic, “Translating Research into Action: Reducing HIV Stigma to Optimize HIV Outcomes.” At the event, researchers, policy analysts, and community stakeholders discussed best practices on measuring/monitoring HIV stigma, tracking its relationship to HIV outcomes and service implementation, and promising interventions to reduce HIV stigma. The need to convene on this subject is pressing. One HIV-positive attendee, who works as a senior U.S. government policy advisor, recounted a story about facing HIV stigma after a recent car crash sent her to the emergency room—her first nurse arrived in a hazmat suit. She recounted, “Here we are, people in power, and this is happening to us on a daily basis.”
Four staff members from the USAID- and PEPFAR-funded Health Policy Project (HPP) were invited to participate in the event, with both David Mbote and Laura Nyblade leading sessions. Nyblade, a senior technical advisor on stigma and discrimination for HPP/RTI, provided an update on HIV stigma measurement for the conference attendees. Mbote, a technical policy advisor for HPP/Kenya, led a panel highlighting community-led activities focused on reducing HIV stigma. HPP worked to develop and implement a gender and sexual diversity training for the U.S. government, which was provided as an example of a step forward for those working in the field of HIV stigma reduction.
In a debrief following the conference, Molly Fitzgerald, an HPP senior technical advisor, offered a promising take on the state of the field: “We do have things we can do that we know work in reducing stigma. It may take will or improved resources—but we do actually know what to do.”
- Learn more about the HPP's work on stigma
- Comprehensive Package for Reducing Stigma and Discrimination in Health Facilities
- Success Story: Combating Fear and Stigma while Living with HIV in Jamaica
- Blog: Zero Discrimination Day: Breaking Down HIV Stigma with Individual, Structural, and Health Facility Policy Interventions?
- Something to Build On: “Innovation Exchange” Celebrates the Health Policy Project’s Close and a New Beginning
- What Will it Take for Tanzania to Achieve ART Targets and Ensure Long-Term Sustainability of the HIV Response?
- Helping Kenya’s County Leaders Advocate for Increased Health Investments
- HPP Holds Working Meeting on Ensuring Responsible PEPFAR Transitions for Key Populations
- Health Policy Project Celebrates 2016 International Women's Day
- HPP Staff Participate in White House Conference on HIV Stigma Reduction