Breaking down barriers about AIDS

MONTREAL (CUP) -- In the fight against HIV/AIDS, clear and accessible information for prevention provides the strongest basis for hope. However, since its appearance in 1981, HIV/AIDS has carried heavy stigmas for those infected, and even for those at risk.

As a result, HIV-positive people and people at risk of contracting HIV are too often afraid to seek the information they need, and are ultimately left in the dark.

Chinese philosopher and political theorist Confucius contended, “Ignorance is the night of the mind, a night without moon or star.” AIDS, a global pandemic with terrifying ramifications, shows what happens when the facts are not laid out bright and clear.

Halfway across the world, Kenyan organizations are attempting to help people find the information they are looking for through the use of information communication technologies, or ICTs.

In 2004, the BBC reported that Kenyan organizations were offering service wherein people could text message questions to local AIDS clinics, and receive free and and speedy responses.

Since more than 2.5 million Kenyans have mobile phones, the technique plays upon the cultural milieu to reach out to a large population. The question that can be asked is: Are there similar or equivalent services available in Canada? How can ICTs be used to teach Canadians about HIV/AIDS?

Karen Herland, a professor at Concordia University and instructor of an interdisciplinary undergraduate course on HIV/AIDS, explained that AIDS “calls into question preconceived notions and representations of identities (sexuality, race, class, gender, ability, age, etc.), individual and collective rights, and the role of science in modern life as well as its history and meanings.”

The roles of science and technology, it seems, are constantly being explored.

A 2001 report by the International Development Research Council of Canada suggested “focused applications of ICTs and appropriate policies that empower intermediary groups such as community institutions, health care providers, and those working with the poor and vulnerable groups can make good use of ICTs to improve the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS.”

In Montreal, AIDS Community Care Montreal is the principal source for information and services concerning HIV/AIDS. Executive program director Ken Monteith noted that ACCM's website is its primary means of disseminating information. The site is designed to be easy to use, frequently updated, and approachable for people who have questions.

“As an educational and prevention tool, there is certainly great potential in our site, and we will continue to explore the new and various ways in which [information communications technology] can be used to help people with HIV/AIDS,” he said.

One of the features of the site is the option to e-mail questions to the ACCM staff. Despite the availability of resources, however, Monteith felt that privacy is always an issue.

“Picking up the phone can be difficult, yes, but sending an e-mail to ask questions can also be difficult because in many cases, to do so is to expose oneself; to send an e-mail in your own name reveals your identity, and some people are not comfortable with that exposure,” Monteith said.

In learning environments like the HIV/AIDS class, when the fear of stigmatization and concerns for privacy are not necessarily as strong, ICTs can have an enhanced role.

For example, tutorial leaders Eric Berndt and Jason Crawford have put together an interactive weblog for the class.

Herland explained that the blog is “being introduced as a tool to allow students to discuss material outside of the classroom environment. Perhaps as issues are raised in the news or in other media which they want to discuss, perhaps to share URLs, information on events or activities or other resources which may interest other students.”

In addition to HIV/AIDS class blog, the online community of bloggers -- or “blogosphere” -- also has an extended network of online activists and information gatherers who update on a frequent basis. The AIDS Combat Zone is a well-developed site with an excellent selection of links. The links include relevant scientific, social and organizational sources, and also a “Live from Africa” section, which connects users to the blogs of people working in the field to fight AIDS. AIDS Combat Zone is an effective gateway into the AIDS-related blogosphere.

The CBC's website hosts a detailed collection of information named “AIDS: The Global Epidemic,” which not only provides a timeline of the disease, and a history of its treatment, but also explores various topical issues from the vulnerability of Canada's aboriginal population to AIDS, to extensive coverage of the 2006 International AIDS conference in Toronto.

The comprehensive website TheBody.com provides information in over 500 topic areas, and also has staff medical doctors to answer questions posed by online users. It also has a “connect” section which attempts to forge links between the online HIV/AIDS support community, and various face-to-face communities.

It features a very comprehensive prevention and testing section, which aims to clear up myths about transmission, and outline all the necessities for prevention.

There is also the highly visible Aldo Fights AIDS campaign, which uses dramatic images of and endorsement from celebrities to raise awareness. Though the website resembles a publicity campaign, it contains some useful information, and has links to many outreach education and prevention programs.

Although ICTs provide an unprecedented wealth of information, access is not universal.

“For people living in poverty, these resources are simply not available, as they cannot afford Internet access,” Monteith said. “Furthermore, if you didn't start out poor, HIV/AIDS will quickly make you poor due to the cost of medication.”

In addition to barriers of access, a second shortcoming of ICTs as an HIV/AIDS resource is the lack of face-to-face human contact.

“With online communication, there is too much pressure for people to express what they are feeling through words. But you can't type everything you are going through,” Monteith said.

“Without human conversation, you can't communicate the nuances of visual expression, of body language, of how emotion is shown in the face, and it's not a full representation of what a person is going through.”

Luckily, many AIDS educators and activists recognize this deficiency, and are constantly utilizing the advantages of human interaction for AIDS education, and employ ICTs as supplementary tools.