O cotidiano de mulheres portadoras de HIV/AIDS atendidas em um hospital de referência

Abstract

Introduction: The Human Immunodeficiency Virus has been occupying a prominent place among the dreaded pathologies of the current times. The feminization and heterogenization of HIV in the pandemic in Latin America and Brazil take a prominent position with an increase in the number of new infections. Thus, the increase in the incidence among women may be associated with particular vulnerabilities. Objective: To analyze the daily life of women with HIV/AIDS treated at a referral hospital in Teresina-PI. Methods: The research adopted a qualitative approach focusing on the Merleau-Ponty phenomenological method. The study was carried out at the reference hospital in the city of Teresina-PI. The study participants were composed of ten women with HIV/AIDS who underwent outpatient follow-up at the hospital. An interview script was used, containing open questions, as a private research instrument and interpreted based on thematic analysis. Results And Discussion: From the thematic analysis of the interviews, four thematic categories emerged: women's perception of what HIV/AIDS is, the initial impact of living with a diagnosis of HIV/AIDS, coping with prejudice related to HIV/AIDS and the daily life of women with HIV/AIDS. It was observed that the women demonstrated knowledge about HIV/AIDS, mentioning some of the symptoms and how the virus affects the immune system. Regarding the impact of discovering the disease, the interviewees mentioned that the first reaction was the scare and fear of changes, this feeling linked to hopelessness caused sadness, making them vulnerable. When entering the subjective field of women, it was observed that there is a fear that other people have knowledge about the disease due to the present prejudice. During the process, there was an increased concern with quality of life and care for others. Conclusion: In this study, it was evidenced that, over time, women learned to live with the disease, that is, they undergo a process of personal reorganization, which can influence the acceptance of their new health condition. Thus, there was a change in the improvement of their living situation that included the maintenance of daily activities. In addition, women know about the meaning of HIV/AIDS.