Psychological Impact of the Non Disclosure of the Diagnostic of HIV Seropositivity among Young People between 18-35 Years Old: Marian Ngouaby Health Centre Case Mozambique

Abstract

Introduction: The Human Immunodeficiency Virus is still a worldwide Health Problem with great psychological impact on young and adult couples. Several studies are carried out on HIV in Mozambique on its prevalence, antiretroviral treatment among other aspects but the psychological impact of this disease is poorly studied. The study aimed to understand the psychological impact that the non-disclosure of the Seropositivity has on the marital relationship from the existing conceptions regarding HIV. Materials and methods: The study was carried at Marian Ngouaby Health Centre from January 2017 to June 2018. The Research protocol was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee of the Saint Thomas University of Mozambique on October 8, 2017. It was done a documentary analysis of the clinical files of the users of the Centre’s antiretroviral treatment services to identify the participants who met the inclusion criteria. After selecting the users' files with the inclusion criteria, the day on which each user had ART was written down. On the day each user had consultation, the subject of the study was explained to them and they were subjected to an interview after signing the informed consent. Results: The study included 10 users aged 18 to 35 years. Among these participants 8 were women and all of them were unemployed and 2 employed men. They had a level of education ranging from fifth grade to twelfth grade with the exception of a man who had no education at all. All the participants hadn’t disclosed their HIV status to their partners. Conclusion: It is concluded that the non-disclosure of the HIV-positive diagnostic between couples affects them causing psychological problems in the person who did not disclose his/her status, such as anxiety, blame, changes in sexual patterns, social isolation, alcohol and drug use, suicide attempt and depression, and these problems negatively interfere in the couple’s life, thus reducing the couple’s quality of life.