Self-Management of HIV and Diabetes in African American Women: A Systematic Review of Qualitative Literature

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this systematic review of qualitative literature was (1) to identify self-management strategies, (2) to identify women's barriers to self-management, and (3) to compare self-management strategies of diabetes and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). African American women living with HIV are at high risk for developing diabetes because of genetics, lifestyle, and HIV treatment. Self-management of each of these conditions is critical to decrease morbidity and mortality. Conclusions A literature search resulted in 15 articles: 10 on the topic of HIV and 5 on diabetes. Self-management strategies included spirituality, family and social support, and indulgent self-care. Barriers included depression, stigma, and the role of caregiver. The themes identified for HIV and diabetes self-care barriers and facilitators were exceptionally similar. Themes of spirituality, family support, and indulgent self-care were part of both HIV and diabetes self-care. Women with HIV were less concerned with their independence than women with diabetes, and focused on disclosure of their HIV status and development of a support system.

Explaining the Relationship Between Personality and Health in a National Sample of African Americans: The Mediating Role of Social Support

“…These findings are especially important within the cultural context of the African American community. Prior research has demonstrated the importance of social support, social capital, and other social network-related variables to health among African Americans (Debnam, Holt, Clark, Roth, & Southward, 2012;Dressler & Bindon, 2000;Erving, 2018;Holt, Roth, Huang, & Clark, 2018;Zuniga, Wright, Fordyce, West, & Garcia, 2018). Furthermore, interpersonal factors are important in partially mediating the effects of the strong Black women schema and psychological distress among African American women (Watson-Singleton, 2017).…”

Resilience as a Mediator of the Association between Spirituality and Self-Management among Older People with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

“…Therefore, there is a correlation between spirituality and self-management in COPD patients. Previous studies have also shown that spirituality is closely related to the self-management of chronic diseases [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. However, current research exploring the relationship between spirituality and chronic disease self-management is limited to qualitative studies, with few investigative studies [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ].…”

“…Previous studies have also shown that spirituality is closely related to the self-management of chronic diseases [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. However, current research exploring the relationship between spirituality and chronic disease self-management is limited to qualitative studies, with few investigative studies [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. There are also no studies that correlate spirituality with self-management level in COPD patients.…”

‘Analogy-Based Comprehensive Diabetes Education’ (ABCDE) Improves Glycemic Control of Diabetic Patients in an Underserved Population: Results of a Retrospective Chart Analysis

“…This results in higher rates of diabetic complications, hospitalizations and mortality [ 12 , 13 ]. Multiple barriers are involved in diabetic ‘non-adherence’ [ 15 ] including health disparities [ 16 ], socioeconomic factors [ 17 , 18 ], language [ 19 , 20 ], race and ethnicity [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ], and these barriers especially impact minority and underserved populations, such as HIV patients [ 26 , 27 ]. Improving patient understanding and facilitating behavior modifications are important [ 28 ], but have been a challenge and difficult to achieve.…”

“…These barriers contribute to higher complications and mortality in diabetic patients [ 12 , 13 ], and efforts are being continually made to understand and eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare [ 25 ]. Many of these barriers occur in minorities with diabetes [ 26 ] and especially in patients with HIV, which typically combines racial/ethnic barriers, socioeconomic barriers and linguistic barriers [ 27 ]. Although formal diabetes education is reported to be impactful on the practice and behavior of diabetic patients [ 28 ], this is not evenly observed in all diabetic populations.…”