Music as a vehicle for reducing HIV stigma and increasing access to testing in rural Uganda: A quasi-experimental, mixed-methods study

Abstract

Background nbsp New HIV infections in Uganda rose by percent in between the years of and Since the Global Livingston Institute has been working with community partners to produce the quot iKnow quot Concert Series in rural Uganda This annual free concert series offers various musical acts featuring performers who come together to launch a three pronged approach Use celebrities to stress that people can live a long healthy life while HIV positive thereby decreasing stigma surrounding the disease distribute free condoms and teach people how to use them and offer free on site HIV testing counseling and treatment services This study seeks to assess the familiarity and opinions of community members in Kabale regarding the quot iKnow quot Concert Series as well as gain a deeper understanding of HIV related knowledge and stigma in this region We hypothesize that the concert is an effective intervention to increase knowledge and reduce stigma surrounding HIV in rural Uganda Methods A nbsp quasi experimental mixed methods design was used to conduct semi structured interviews These interviews included survey questionnaires assessing personal HIV knowledge and stigma as well as open ended questions to allow for additional discussion Results A total of interviews were conducted The mean total HIV AIDS Knowledge score was out of and the Mean total HIV related stigma score was out of A multivariable linear regression analysis was run to predict HIV related stigma and HIV AIDS Knowledge from gender age employment status religion and education These variables statistically predicted a significant association with reduced stigma and level of education F p lt R and higher levels of education being associated with reduced stigma F p lt R All variables added to the prediction p lt Conclusion Education level is significantly associated with reduced negative attitudes and beliefs towards people living with HIV AIDS PLWHA The results suggest that those who report having completed High School and higher score almost points lower of the stigma scale on average This study informs our efforts to increase accessibility to testing and services for rural communities while also reducing stigma and educating participants at the concert on disease prevention and treatment