scholarly journals The 3 levels of HIV stigma in the United States military: perspectives from service members living with HIV

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph M. Yabes ◽  
Phillip W. Schnarrs ◽  
Leroy B. Foster ◽  
Paul T. Scott ◽  
Jason F. Okulicz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
Service Members ◽  
Epidemiological Surveillance ◽  
Hiv Education ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Living With Hiv

Abstract Background Epidemiological surveillance data indicate that a majority of HIV-infected in the United States (U.S.) military are African-Americans and men who have sex with men. There is limited research about barriers to HIV prevention among military service members and the unique factors that contribute to HIV stigma. Methods A convenience sample of 30 U.S. service members were recruited from an infectious disease clinic. In depth interviews were conducted and data analyzed using a thematic coding process. Results Two broad categories were identified: 1) Outcomes of HIV Stigma: Fear of Rejection, Shame, and Embarrassment; and 2) Strategies for combating stigma which include increasing HIV education and prevention resources. Military policies and institutional culture regarding sexuality were found to contribute to stigma. Conclusions Participants identified a need for HIV education and suggested individuals living with HIV serve as mentors. A peer-to-peer intervention for delivering HIV prevention education may address these needs and reduce HIV stigma.

Health and Service-related Impact of Sexual and Stalking Victimization During United States Military Service on LGBT Service Members

2020 ◽  
pp. 088626052097031
Author(s):  
Cary Leonard Klemmer ◽  
Ashley C. Schuyler ◽  
Mary Rose Mamey ◽  
Sheree M. Schrager ◽  
Carl Andrew Castro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Active Duty ◽  
Service Members ◽  
United States Military ◽  
Service Outcomes ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
The Military ◽  
Stalking Victimization

Prior research among military personnel has indicated that sexual harassment, stalking, and sexual assault during military service are related to negative health sequelae. However, research specific to LGBT U.S. service members is limited. The current study aimed to explore the health, service utilization, and service-related impact of stalking and sexual victimization experiences in a sample of active-duty LGBT U.S. service members ( N = 248). Respondent-driven sampling was used to recruit study participants. U.S. service members were eligible to participate if they were 18 years or older and active-duty members of the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, or U.S. Air Force. This study included a sizeable portion of transgender service members ( N = 58, 23.4%). Sociodemographic characteristics, characteristics of military service, health, and sexual and stalking victimization in the military were assessed. Regression was used to examine relationships between health and service outcomes and sexual and stalking victimization during military service. Final adjusted models showed that experiencing multiple forms of victimization in the military increased the odds of visiting a mental health clinician and having elevated somatic symptoms, posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology, anxiety, and suicidality. Sexual and stalking victimization during U.S. military service was statistically significantly related to the mental and physical health of LGBT U.S. service members. Interventions to reduce victimization experiences and support LGBT U.S. service members who experience these types of violence are indicated. Research that examines the role of LGBT individuals’ experiences and organizational and peer factors, including social support, leadership characteristics, and institutional policies in the United States military is needed.

scholarly journals PERIACETABULAR OSTEOTOMY IN ACTIVE DUTY U.S. MILITARY PERSONNEL: A SINGLE CENTER’S EXPERIENCE WITH A MINIMUM OF TWO YEARS FOLLOW-UP

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4_suppl3) ◽  
pp. 2325967120S0014
Author(s):  
Andrew S. Murtha ◽  
Matthew R. Schmitz
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Periacetabular Osteotomy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Active Duty ◽  
Service Members ◽  
Military Service Members ◽  
Active Service ◽  
The Impact

Background: The primary focus of periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) literature has been survivorship until hip arthroplasty. This endpoint overlooks its impact on young, active patients. Hypothesis/Purpose: This study sought to assess the impact of the PAO on the careers of active duty members of the United States Armed Forces. Methods: A retrospective review identified 38 patients who underwent PAO performed by a single surgeon at an academic, military medical center from January 2014 through April 2017. Twenty-one of the patients were active duty United States military service members (16 female, 5 male) and had a minimum 28 months of post-operative follow-up at the time of review. Preoperative and postoperative duty restrictions were noted and referrals to the U.S Army and U.S. Air Force Medical Evaluation Boards (MEB) were queried. Results: The average age at surgery was 25.6 years (range, 19-40y). Preoperatively, sixteen patients (94.1%) were on duty restrictions, one had been referred to the MEB, and records were not available on three patients who separated from the military prior to review. Average follow-up was 3.4 years (range, 2.3 – 5.4y). Among the patients without a preoperative MEB referral, 85.0% remained on active duty (n = 12) or completed their military service commitment (n=5). Of the fourteen patients with temporary duty restrictions preoperatively, 35.7% (n=5) were relieved of their restrictions and returned to full duty and 50% (n=7) were retained on active service with permanent duty restrictions. Such permanent duty restrictions typically consisted of modifications to the aerobic component of the semiannual military fitness testing. Six patients (28.6%) were referred to the MEB including one who was referred prior to PAO. Of these patients, two were deemed fit to retain on active service with permanent duty restrictions, two were medically separated for non-hip conditions, and two were medically separated for a hip condition. The average Veteran Affairs (VA) disability score related to hip pathology in patients referred to MEB was 16% (range 0-40%). Conclusion: This is the first study to look at the PAO in active duty military service members. In patients with symptomatic acetabular dysplasia, PAO may provide an opportunity to relieve preoperative duty restrictions and allow for continued military service. Further study with the inclusion of patient reported outcomes are necessary assess the impact of the procedure in this active patient population.

scholarly journals Neighborhood Racial Diversity, Socioeconomic Status, and Perceptions of HIV-Related Discrimination and Internalized HIV Stigma Among Women Living with HIV in the United States

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 270-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaylee B. Crockett ◽  
Andrew Edmonds ◽  
Mallory O. Johnson ◽  
Torsten B. Neilands ◽  
Mirjam-Colette Kempf ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Racial Diversity ◽  
The United States ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
Women Living With Hiv ◽  
Living With Hiv

LGBT Military Service Policies in the United States

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Goodhart ◽  
Jami K. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Psychological Disorder ◽  
Service Members ◽  
Transgender People ◽  
And Bisexual ◽  
Lgbt People ◽  
The Military ◽  
The U.S

For most of its history, the U.S. military has maintained a policy of exclusion toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people serving in uniform. The justifications for these exclusions have included the view that being homosexual or transgender is a psychological disorder, that it undermines military morale and effectiveness, and a fear that LGBT people would be vulnerable to foreign espionage. Explicit policies banning consensual homosexual sex—and excluding from service those who engage in it—date to the period between World Wars I and II, but de facto efforts at exclusion have existed since the early days of the republic. Regulations governing homosexuals in the military came under pressure in the 1970s and 1980s as societal views toward lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people changed, and those LGB service members discharged under the policy increasingly challenged their treatment in court. (Public pressure to change regulations governing transgender people in the military arose mostly in the 2000s, though litigation efforts date to the 1970s.) In addition to general shifts in public and legal opinion, the debate over LGB people serving in the U.S. military was affected by the experience of foreign militaries that allow LGB people to serve. United States law began to loosen formal restrictions on LBG people serving in uniform with the passage of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) in 1994, but it still required LGB people to serve in secret. Changing public perceptions of LGB people and problems implementing the ban galvanized support for eliminating such restrictions. In 2010, President Obama signed legislation repealing DADT and removing all restrictions on LGB people serving in the military. However, transgender people do not enjoy the same rights. The Trump administration has revised Obama-era rules on transgender service members to enable greater exclusion. The issue is being contested in the courts and appears ripe for further political and legal dispute.

Internalized HIV Stigma Predicts Suboptimal Retention in Care Among People Living with HIV in the United States

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine A. Pearson ◽  
Mallory O. Johnson ◽  
Torsten B. Neilands ◽  
Samantha E. Dilworth ◽  
John A. Sauceda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Retention In Care ◽  
The United States ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Living With Hiv

Military Service Members’ Satisfaction With Outness: Implications for Mental Health

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 140-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wyatt R. Evans ◽  
Sebastian J. Bliss ◽  
Christina M. Rincon ◽  
Scott L. Johnston ◽  
Jagruti P. Bhakta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Service Members ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
And Bisexual ◽  
The Military

This study is among the first examining lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) service members in the United States following the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy repeal. Higher levels of outness predict better mental health among general LGB populations. The military environment, like other traditional/conservative settings, may alter this relation; however, no data are available on outness among LGB service members in the United States. We examined 236 service members’ level of outness and satisfaction with outness in relation to depression and anxiety symptoms. Results revealed greater level of outness was related to higher satisfaction with outness, with each variable related to better mental health. Importantly, satisfaction fully mediated the relation between level of outness and mental health, indicating satisfaction to be a more salient predictor than level alone. Findings relevant to military policy makers and health-care providers are discussed along with recommendations for advancement of research into outness among LGB people.

scholarly journals Staphylococcus aureus colonization of healthy military service members in the United States and Afghanistan

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Todd J Vento ◽  
Tatjana P Calvano ◽  
David W Cole ◽  
Katrin Mende ◽  
Elizabeth A Rini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Staphylococcus Aureus ◽  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Service Members ◽  
Military Service Members

scholarly journals Longitudinal HIV Transmission Risk Profiles Among Men Who Have Sex With Men Living With HIV in the SUN Study

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 155798831881828
Author(s):  
Jacob J. van den Berg ◽  
Nickolas D. Zaller ◽  
Fizza S. Gillani ◽  
Shira I. Dunsiger ◽  
Brandon D. L. Marshall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Sexual Risk ◽  
Hiv Transmission ◽  
The United States ◽  
Transmission Risk ◽  
Risk Class ◽  
Sex With Men ◽  
Hiv Transmission Risk ◽  
Living With Hiv

Examining how multiple concomitant factors interact to augment HIV transmission risk is needed to inform more effective primary and secondary HIV prevention programs for men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United States. The development of a “taxonomy” of long-term sexual and drug-related risk behavior profiles may have important implications for resource allocation and targeted HIV prevention programming. A secondary data analysis was conducted to explore longitudinal HIV transmission risk profiles among 423 MSM living with HIV enrolled in the Study to Understand the Natural History of HIV and AIDS in the Era of Effective Therapy (SUN Study). Between March 2004 and February 2012, participants completed semiannual, audio computer-assisted self-interviews that included demographics, employment status, medical information, alcohol use, stimulant use, sexual risk, and depression. Latent class analysis was used to identify patterns of risky behavior over time with respect to sexual risk, heavy drinking, and stimulant (i.e., methamphetamine and cocaine) use taken collectively. Three classes were identified: (a) High Sustained Heavy Drinker Class (33%), (b) High Mostly Stable Sexual Risk Class (17%), and (c) Overall Low Risk Class. (50%). Post hoc comparisons between classes revealed that men in Classes 1 ( p = .03) and 2 ( p = .02) were significantly younger than those in Class 3. In comparison to those in Classes 1 and 3, those in Class 2 were less likely to report being a racial/ethnic minority ( p = .04) and had the highest self-reported sexually transmitted infections ( p < .001). Findings indicate the need to better integrate sexual and substance use risk reduction strategies, including brief interventions and engagement in addiction treatment, for MSM living with HIV in the United States.

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