How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore
This article interrogates the mainstream healthcare narrative that frames human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as a chronic disease, and triangulates it with the lived experiences of people with HIV in Singapore. It also examines how HIV patients reconstruct their identities after the diagnosis of HIV...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2017-01-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2017.1333899 |
| _version_ | 1819142749478191104 |
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| author | Lai Peng Ho Esther C. L. Goh |
| author_facet | Lai Peng Ho Esther C. L. Goh |
| author_sort | Lai Peng Ho |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article interrogates the mainstream healthcare narrative that frames human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as a chronic disease, and triangulates it with the lived experiences of people with HIV in Singapore. It also examines how HIV patients reconstruct their identities after the diagnosis of HIV. Four HIV patients (two males and two females) were interviewed in depth by an experienced medical social worker. Findings revealed that even as the illness trajectory of HIV has shifted from a terminal condition to a chronic one, living with HIV continues to be fraught with difficulty as society, especially in the Asian context, perceives HIV with much fear and disapproval. The participants had an overwhelming sense of shame when they were initially diagnosed with HIV and they had to reconstruct a liveable identity by containing the shroud of shame, reinforcing their normative identities and constructing new ones. These strategies help them to keep their shame at bay. This paper also unpacks nuanced insights of shame experienced by Chinese HIV patients in an Asian city dominated by Confucian values. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T12:15:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3ee0c48448ce4eeda8bc99bb55d32b51 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1748-2631 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T12:15:18Z |
| publishDate | 2017-01-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being |
| spelling | doaj.art-3ee0c48448ce4eeda8bc99bb55d32b512022-12-21T18:26:10ZengTaylor & Francis GroupInternational Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being1748-26312017-01-0112110.1080/17482631.2017.13338991333899How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of SingaporeLai Peng Ho0Esther C. L. Goh1Tan Tock Seng HospitalNational University of SingaporeThis article interrogates the mainstream healthcare narrative that frames human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as a chronic disease, and triangulates it with the lived experiences of people with HIV in Singapore. It also examines how HIV patients reconstruct their identities after the diagnosis of HIV. Four HIV patients (two males and two females) were interviewed in depth by an experienced medical social worker. Findings revealed that even as the illness trajectory of HIV has shifted from a terminal condition to a chronic one, living with HIV continues to be fraught with difficulty as society, especially in the Asian context, perceives HIV with much fear and disapproval. The participants had an overwhelming sense of shame when they were initially diagnosed with HIV and they had to reconstruct a liveable identity by containing the shroud of shame, reinforcing their normative identities and constructing new ones. These strategies help them to keep their shame at bay. This paper also unpacks nuanced insights of shame experienced by Chinese HIV patients in an Asian city dominated by Confucian values.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2017.1333899HIVidentity reconstructionchronic diseasenormalityqualitative methodsin-depth interview |
| spellingShingle | Lai Peng Ho Esther C. L. Goh How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being HIV identity reconstruction chronic disease normality qualitative methods in-depth interview |
| title | How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore |
| title_full | How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore |
| title_fullStr | How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore |
| title_full_unstemmed | How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore |
| title_short | How HIV patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture: the case of Singapore |
| title_sort | how hiv patients construct liveable identities in a shame based culture the case of singapore |
| topic | HIV identity reconstruction chronic disease normality qualitative methods in-depth interview |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2017.1333899 |
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