Silenced Voices
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Silenced Voices: the experiences of women living with HIV who are subject to domestic violence.
IRAS ID
164131
Contact name
Khatidja Chantler
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
4 years, 8 months, 2 days
Research summary
The intersection between HIV and domestic violence is poorly understood and under researched in the UK. Domestic abuse is estimated to affect 29.9% of women in the UK and 73% of all people experiencing domestic abuse are women (Smith et al 2012). The limited exploratory research there has been at the intersection of HIV and domestic violence calls for more work in the area. Due to the prevalence of HIV in the UK generally and particularly in London, much of the current research has a London focus despite parts of the North West also having a high prevalence. London residents account for just under half of people accessing HIV care in England (Public Health England 2013), however Manchester has a comparable prevalence rate to London. Manchester prevalence meets the threshold for whole population testing and is therefore a suitable site for conducting HIV research.
In addition, there is little attention paid to gender in HIV research and issues of domestic violence and HIV are under researched. In contrast, this qualitative research explores the relationship between HIV and domestic violence among women living with HIV and aims:
I) To explore what the significance of an HIV diagnosis might be in the experience of domestic violence.
ii)To explore specific health and social impacts of domestic violence for women living with HIV.
iii)To explore the impact of disclosure/non disclosure of HIV and/or DV on the woman and her family
iv) To identify perceived helpful support strategies for women in order to begin to formulate accessible and relevant service responses.
The research will take place at the Hathersage Centre, Manchester Centre for Sexual Health, at Manchester Royal Infirmary. Between 10 to 15 women will be interviewed for the study using in depth, semi structured narrative interviews. Interpretation will be available for French and Arabic speaking women.REC name
North West - Greater Manchester East Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/NW/0120
Date of REC Opinion
25 Feb 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion