PSYCHIATRIC MORBIDITIES IN PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS-A CASE STUDY OF GUJARAT

Niloofar Quraishi
Dr., Academic Associate, School of Liberal Studies and Education,
Navrachana University, Bhayali, Baroda, Gujarat, India, niloofarq@outlook.com

Abstract
Despite all the medical advances we have made in treatment of HIV infection the psychiatric care of the patients of persons’ with HIV and AIDS remained one of the most challenging  aspects of medical care. The review of antecedent literature showed a paucity of information and evidence of psychiatric morbidities amongst PLWHAS. Nevertheless, such studies   were confined to South India only. Considering this as a pivot the researcher decided to undertake one such piece of research in Gujarat. The main objectives of the research undertaken   were, to study the presence of psychiatric morbidities like anxiety, depression and suicide ideation in People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAS), to study their self-esteem and to explore the association between HIV positive status and psychiatric morbidities with reference to age, gender, occupation, habitat and religion. The dependent variables in the study were presence of anxiety, depression, suicide ideation, quality of life and self-esteem in PLWHAS. The dependent variables were HIV positive status, age , sex, caste, rule of residence and education.
Sample of the study was collected from four major districts of Gujarat namely Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat and Vadodara. The methodology consisted of both quantitative and qualitative methods. Data was collected using standardized tools like Interview Schedule, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Positive and Negative Suicide Ideation Scale (PANSI), Clinical Anxiety Scale (CAS) and World Health Organisation Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL).Data was analysed using Frequency, Percentage Tables, Chi square and Correlation.
Important findings revealed that anxiety score of the respondents was comparatively high according to which 69.9% fell in the category of severe anxiety. Similarly with regards to depression 52.2% i.e. 153 respondents fell in the category of severe depression while 14.7% of the respondents’ i.e. 43 of them were in need of medication. This finding was alarming. Above 50% of the respondents had suicide ideation which also calls for suitable interventions. The analysis suggested that the overall Quality of Life revealed that only 2.4% of respondents had a high score, while the rest were either in moderate or low categories. With regards to medical care almost all worried about their health conditions and medical care. Among the four districts which were taken as sample by the researcher it is observed that Ahmedabad has the highest number of HIV positive patients.  Majority of the respondents belonged to the age group of 30 to 39 years. This age is the most productive age in an individual’s life time. Being infected at this age makes it difficult to be socially, economically as well as reproductively   successful. Belonging to a Social Work profession the researcher developed intervention modalities which could be used at different   stages of infection and thereby help HIV infected people   to lead a normal and purposeful life.

Keywords: Psychiatric morbidities, HIV/AIDS, India, Gujarat and depression