A Rehabilitation Perspective on HIV Disease and AIDS Among Minority Women

Abstract

Women with HIV/AIOS have specific needs that require specialized approaches to address the effects of this disease on them. Minority women with HIV/AIOS, however, have to deal with the triple challenge of race, class, and gender in addition to HIV/AIOS. The paper examines two groups of minority women, African American and Hispanic women, and discusses factors that place these women at high risk for HIV/AIOS. The interaction of race, class, and gender, and how it relates to the prevalence of high rates of HIV/AIOS in minority women is explored. Medical, economic and vocational issues of minority women living with this disease are discussed, and suggestions for rehabilitation of theses women are made.