Social support, Stress and Adherence to ARVs among Persons living with HIV/AIDS.

Abstract

The study sought to assess the relationship between social support, stress and adherence to ARVs among persons living with HIV/AIDS in Kampala district. A quantitative, cross sectional and correlation survey study design was adopted. A total of 30 Questionnaires were systematically distributed to the respondents. The researcher employed self –administered questionnaires which consisted of closed end questions to collect information from the respondents. Data was entered into a computer using the statistical packages for social sciences (SPSS). The findings of the study indicated that there was actually a significant relationship between social support and adherence to ARVs, stress and adherence to ARVs, and Social support and stress among persons living with HIV/AIDS in Kampala district. The researcher concluded that there is an influence of stress derived from low levels of social support upon adherence to ARVs among people living with HIV, since the findings show a relationship among the three variables, however, the researcher suggested that more research should be conducted upon these three variables since we need to know whether stress could influence adherence to ARVs among people living with HIV.