Satisfaction with healthcare providers among African American Women living with HIV: Results from a secondary data analysis of the Protect Respect Intervention for HIV positive women

Background: Satisfaction with healthcare providers (HCPs) has proven to be a predictor of behavior and health outcomes among HIV positive patients. Virtually no studies have examined the influence of HIV positive patients' satisfaction with HCPs on sexual risk behaviors. The purpose of this presentation is to discuss the results of a secondary data analysis that examined whether satisfaction with HCPs had an impact on sexual behaviors of HIV positive African American women.

Methods: This study analyzed quantitative data from a predominantly low-income sample of 157 HIV positive African American women who ranged in age from 20 to 70 (M = 39.85; SD = 8.72) who participated in Protect and Respect, a sexual risk reduction program for women with HIV/AIDS.

Results: This study found that HIV positive African American women reported satisfaction and communication with their HCPs. However, satisfaction did not have any significant associations to condom use behaviors. Although this study found no significant associations between satisfaction with HCPs and condom use, findings indicated that contrary to existing literature, African American women living with HIV/AIDS can be satisfied with their HCPs and communicate about stigmatized topics.

Conclusions: In conclusion, this study provided insight into satisfaction with HCPs and health outcomes among HIV positive African American women. This was one of the first studies to find satisfaction with HCPs among HIV positive African American women. Given the disparities of HIV/AIDS infection among African American women, further research on their experiences with HCPs may prove to be vital to their health outcomes.