AIDSVu Adds Visualized Data on Stigma
From poz.com…
With a goal of reducing and tracking the stigmas that act as a barrier to HIV prevention, treatment and care—as well as a hindrance to better overall health outcomes—AIDSVu recently added a new online feature, the JHU Stigma Dashboard that offers visualized stigma-related data. Currently, the dashboard tracks sexual behavior stigma in Georgia, New York and Maryland. Specifically, it includes data on men who have sex with men in those states. Additional data and geographic areas will be added to the dashboard in future phases.
Johns Hopkins University (JHU) researchers Amrita Rao, PhD, and Stefan Baral, MD, created the Stigma Dashboard to showcase progress to eliminating stigmas across different geographic regions in a tangible way.
Stigma comes in many forms and can negatively affect the way people living with and at risk for HIV interact with medical professionals and adhere to HIV treatment and prevention. What’s more, there are many types of stigma that affect a person’s wellbeing and engagement in care. Racism, homophobia, transphobia and HIV stigma are but a few examples.