Over 88% of the women received SRH counseling from health workers, mostly after HIV testing. SRH counseling was mainly focused on family planning, according to 71% of the women and 15% of the women had been advised to stop having children. The participants were not aware of the existing guidelines on pre-conception counseling. Over 90% of both men and women respondents felt that women living with HIV should not get pregnant without guidance from health workers. The interview sessions revealed cases in which women encounter mistreatment and negative attitudes behaviour at health facilities. Women and men reported situations in which health workers express their disapproval of HIV positive women who desire to have a child or have become pregnant.
ICWEA demands legal and policy review and development
While Uganda has enacted a number of policies to address HIV vulnerabilities across the different groups of the population, SRHR violations of women living with HIV have not received adequate attention. There is need for review of HIV and SRH policies to adequately take into account SRHR violations to ensure a good standard of health for all and effective management of HIV response in the country.
November 29, 2015
