Kampala women getting by: wellbeing in the time of AIDS

The project reported in this book sought to contribute to HIV/AIDS control efforts by specifying the factors inhibiting early and effective treatment of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among ordinary low-income women living in a neighborhood of Kampala Uganda and thus revealing what response to HIV/AIDS should be prioritized and the actual or potential contribution of informal STD treatment options to disease management. The effect of stigma and moral judgements on STD treatment-seeking is revealed by comparison of the management of STD and crisis illness in children under age five years. Each chapter was written by a member of the multidisciplinary team or by the team as a whole. After an introductory chapter chapter 2 describes the physical setting and the urban system at work. The third chapter uses Ugandan census data to report on demographics and social aspects of the population. Chapter 4 describes community life and chapter 5 looks at household well-being. The sixth chapter sets forth treatment options and chapter 7 covers the process of home treatment. Chapters 8 and 9 deal with the perception and management of childrens illnesses and STDs. The tenth chapter presents compares and analyzes six case studies of individual womens accounts of treatment seeking. Chapter 11 reports on a process in which the research subjects examine the findings while making an interactive video exploring perceptions of well-being and of responsibility for disease and infectivity. The final chapter presents conclusions about the urban setting treatment options gender balance/womens status; household resources; private risk; and public responsibility.