263968 Adherence to HAART in HIV positive populations: Social support, stress, and coping

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

John Bidwell , Center for Psychosocial Health Research, University of North Texas, Fort Worth, TX
Chwee-Lye Chng, PhD , Kinesiology, Health Promotion and Recreation, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Mark Vosvick, PhD , Psychology, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Eliot Lopez, MS , Psychology, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
HIV-positive adults live longer in the wake of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) (Lui et al., 2006). However, adherence to HAART programs averages 60 – 70% for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH; Simoni et al., 2006), a rate too low for the regimen to be effective (Bonttonari et al. 2010). Positive styles of coping (Jia et al. 2004) and social support (Bontempi et al., 2004) are associated with improved medication adherence, while stress is associated with decreased adherence (Bottonari et al., 2010). We hypothesize that social support, stress and coping collectively explain a significant amount of variance in adherence to HAART among PLWH. Using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support ( = .92), Perceived Stress Scale ( = .84), and the Brief Cope measures (a = .64), we collected data from 173 HIV-positive participants in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. We conducted a hierarchical regression analysis to test our hypothesis. . Our model suggests that family support (β =-.29, t=-3.23, p<.01), support from friends (β =.25, t=2.74, p<.01), use of instrumental support (β =-.23, t=-2.66, p<.01) and stress (β =-.22, t=-2.72, p<.01) all contribute significantly to adherence [adj. R² =.18, F(13, 160) = 3.93, p<.01]. Our findings suggest nuanced interactive relationships between medication adherence and family social support, support from friends, stress and coping styles. These, variables should be incorporated into public health programs addressing medication adherence for PLWH.

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Chronic disease management and prevention

Learning Objectives:
1) Explain the effects of stress on HIV-positive adults 2) Describe the relationship of coping and social support in the lives of HIV-positive adults 3) Demonstrate how coping, social support relate to HAART adherence among HIV-positive adults

Keywords: Adherence, HIV/AIDS

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: As an honors college undergraduate student, I volunteer with the Center for Psychosocial Health Research under the guidance of Drs Chwee-Lye Chng and Mark Vosvick and have helped with the collection and interpretation of data related to this project. I plan to attend a graduate program after completion of my undergraduate studies.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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