Abstract
HIV-positive individuals seek support for medication adherence from a variety of sources-spouses, family and friends. We conducted a qualitative study of twenty same sex male couples where we asked men to give narratives of support received for medication adherence from their partner, family and friends. Men in couple relationships did not routinely seek tangible or practical assistance for adherence from friends and family but almost exclusively from partners. These men did seek and receive informational and emotional support from friends and family. These results have implications for designing interventions for medication support when an individual is in a relationship.
Highlights
Two major aspects of social support we explore are the type of support and the source
When recent studies involving an “important family member” found conflicting evidence for social support in tuberculosis medication adherence, how are we to assess whether the intervention would have been differently affected if the important family member was a spouse versus a parent versus a sibling (Newell et al, 2006; Walley et al, 2001)? Within HIV support literature too, this type of aggregating occurs, as when friends and intimate partners are combined as “peers” (Derlega, Winstead, Oldfield, & Barbee, 2003), or partners and blood relatives as “family” (Vandehey & Shuff, 2001)
Our goal for this paper is to explore the types of support for antiretroviral medication adherence reported by gay couples that they receive from sources in their social network other than their partners
Summary
Two major aspects of social support we explore are the type of support (of what does the support consist) and the source (who is providing the support). Quite often researchers combine the sources of support into an overall measure of generalized (often perceived) support. This approach does not allow for analysis based on the specific source of support (Newell, Baral, Pande, Bam, & Malla, 2006; Revenson, Schiaffino, Majerovitz, & Gibofsky, 1991; Walley, Khan, Newell, & Khan, 2001). This in turn can potentially dilute findings about social support. Adherence among gay couples to know how distinct sources of social support—partners, peers and family—may have different influences on medication adherence
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
