Comparison of Health Status, Socioeconomic Characteristics, and Knowledge and Use of HIV-Related Resources between HIV-Infected Women and Men

Objectives. The authors compared socioeconomic characteristics, and knowledge and use of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related resources and health status measures between HIV-infected women and men registered within the Denver Health and Hospitals health care system. Methods. Data collected th...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Medical care 1998-12, Vol.36 (12), p.1676-1684
Main Authors: Davidson, Arthur J., Bertram, Suzanne L., Lezotte, Dennis C., Marine, William M., Rietmeijer, Cornelis A., Hagglund, Bonnie B., Cohn, David L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
AIDS
Colorado
Community Health Centers - statistics & numerical data
Epidemiology
Female
Gender roles
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Health Resources - statistics & numerical data
Health Status
HIV
HIV infections
HIV Infections - psychology
HIV Infections - therapy
Hospitals, General - statistics & numerical data
Humans
Insurance, Health - statistics & numerical data
Male
Matched-Pair Analysis
Men
Mental health
Sex Factors
Socioeconomic Factors
Substance Abuse, Intravenous
Womens health
Working women
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Objectives. The authors compared socioeconomic characteristics, and knowledge and use of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related resources and health status measures between HIV-infected women and men registered within the Denver Health and Hospitals health care system. Methods. Data collected through two Centers for Disease Control-funded surveillance initiatives (Adult Spectrum of Disease and Supplement to HIV/AIDS Surveillance) were linked. Health status measures were obtained using the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS-20) questionnaire. To compare health status measures between genders, men were matched to women based on disease stage, intravenous drug use, race, years of education, employment status, and age. Results. Among all patients interviewed (n = 419), women (n = 52) were more likely to be minority, uneducated, intravenous drug users, and at earlier stages of HIV-disease than men (n = 367). Employment status was not significantly different. Knowledge of available services was generally good among both genders. Women received public assistance and had health insurance (Medicaid) more often than men. Women used support services, social work, and shelter assistance less often than men. The matched pairs analysis (n = 46 pairs) showed no significant differences between genders in physical and social function, mental health, pain, or general health perceptions; however, role function was better in women than in men (P < 0.02). Conclusions. When controlling for factors that may influence health and access to health care, HIV disease generally impacts the health status of both genders similarly. Women scored higher in role function which may reflect family caretakers' responsibilities. Although knowledge of HIV-related resources was similar by gender, men made contact more often suggesting areas for enhanced outreach toward women.
ISSN:0025-7079
1537-1948
DOI:10.1097/00005650-199812000-00005