Exploring gender and the impact it has on HIV risk

This presentation will provide an overview of HIV/AIDS among woman and girls in the United States and the connection HIV risk and gender norms. Gender norms are often defined within the dominant ideologies of femininity and masculinity which define roles, relationships and power imbalances. These ideals of femininity and masculinity in turn impact decision-making and risktaking behavior.

Gender is an integral component of HIV prevention programming and education globally, but is only beginning in the United States. Much of the international public health community has mandated the integration of gender in health programs. The Office on Women's Health (OWH) recognizes the importance of integrating gender into domestic HIV/AIDS programs for women and girls and has begun introducing these concepts to their HIV prevention grantees through the development an HIV prevention gender toolkit and funding of capacity building providers National Native American AIDS Prevention Center (NNAAPC) and JSI Research and Training Institute, Inc. (JSI). The toolkit is a guide to designing and implementing gender-responsive HIV-prevention programs. JSI and NNAAPC have been assisting OWH-funded agencies to integrate gender in their HIV prevention programs.