AEGiS-11IAC: A tribal model for support of people living with HIV/AIDS.

11th International AIDS Conference

Vancouver, British Columbia — July 7-12, 1996

A tribal model for support of people living with HIV/AIDS.

Int Conf AIDS 1996 Jul 7-12; 11:443 (abstract no. Pub.B.1035)
Maneeprasert R, Sutthi C, Hayden B; Tribal Research Institute, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Fax: 662-053-222494.

ISSUE: Traditional Hill Tribes of Thailand have purification rituals that provide a model for social, economic and psychosomatic support for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) if these rituals can be adapted for use with PLWHA. Project : An intervention approach to research on AIDS in tribal communities of Thailand, by The Tribal Research Institute and a co-researcher from Canada, provides the basis for understanding the most fundamental aspect of the Hill Tribes' cultures. Strategies include focused group discussions and individual interviews with tribal elders who have or without the traditional social positions. Resulte : From a humanitarian and sociological point of view, one of the most important problems associated with AIDS is the social and economic isolation of PLWHA. Among some Akha in Thailand, giving birth to twins and contracting AIDS are considered to be of equal seriousness. Both are thought to be caused by ritual impurity which, in turn, is thought to be caused by improper behavior. Ritual impurity is considered a danger to other members of the community. In traditional Akha society, ritual feasts are held to purify families that have given birth to twins so that they do not have to move out of the community.

LESSONS LEARNED: : The traditional purification ritual could be adapted to the care of PLWHA by promoting its use in tribal villages. If such purification feasts can be successfully adapted for use on PLWHA, it should provide PLWHA with important social and other support from family and community members. Although speculative, such rituals may also provide significant psychological help in fortifying physiological responses to AIDS and prolonging life in some cases. Certainly avoiding the social and economic isolation that accompanies AIDS is important for humanitarian purposes.

Keywords: AEGIS, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, HIV Infections, HIV Long-Term Survivors, Family, Culture, Developing Countries, Canada, Thailand, economics, organization & administration, ICA11

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