Aids, poverty and inequality : implications of the socioecological medicine approach for controlling the HIVAIDS pandemic

Glass, Kathleen (Supervisor) Southern Africa is experiencing an HIV/AIDS pandemic with devastating effects. In this thesis I suggest why prevention efforts have failed to stem the pandemic. Then I argue that developed countries have a duty to help the developing world fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Arguments grounded in justice and in vulnerability are used to reach this conclusion. Next, I suggest that developed countries have not done enough to help. I develop and advocate the Socioecological Medicine Approach as a conceptual framework to help address the HIV/AIDS pandemic. This approach is a useful perspective because it is holistic, embraces web causation, emphasizes interconnectedness, encourages communities to play an active role in responding to the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and encourages humans to adopt a more harmonious place in our environment. The most important conclusion is that HIV/AIDS is a symptom of inequality and poverty, therefore both symptoms and their root causes must be addressed to stem the HIV/AIDS pandemic.