People Living with HIV/AIDS in the Face of Social Stigmas: The Application of Therapeutic Communication in a Hospital Environment in Sagamu, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the application of therapeutic or patient-provider communication in Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH) Sagamu, Nigeria. The study sought to find out how health care providers have applied this form of communication to improve the well-being of people living with HIV/AIDS while they experience stigmas in their social relations. The study used the in-depth interview method with 10 people living with HIV/AIDS and five (5) health care providers as respondents. The study was anchored on interpersonal relations theory. Findings revealed that people living with HIV/AIDS actually experience stigmas in their social relations and this causes some psychological depression to them. The study further found that health care providers at OOUTH understand the concept and practice of therapeutic communication as they purposefully apply it in their health care services to improve the well-being of their patients. The people living with HIV/AIDS also confirm that the application of therapeutic communication by health care providers at OOUTH has been a source of hope, which has brought about an improvement to their health in the face of stigmas they experience in their social relations. While this study concludes that therapeutic communication is a modern health communication approach of improving the well-being of patients in general, it recommends that there is a need for more integration of therapeutic communication in order to make health care delivery more sophisticated and productive in Nigeria.