Page 85 - MJHP MALAYSIAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH PROMOTION Volume 2, 2020

MALAYSIAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH PROMOTION Volume 2, 2020

Under NSPEA, one of the strategies underlined is the reduction of HIV/
AIDS related stigma and discrimination which is a global issue especially
in developing countries and countries with multiple cultures, religions and
moral values, such as Malaysia (Ministry of Health Malaysia, 2015).
Stigma generally refers to negative beliefs or attitudes assigned to
people when their attributes are considered different or inferior to societal
norms. When stigma is acted upon, the result is discrimination which
comprises actions or omissions that are derived from stigma (Goffman,
2009). There are two types of stigma, namely perceived stigma and enacted
stigma. Perceived stigma refers to imagined fear of societal attitudes or
potential discrimination; while enacted stigma refers to a real experience of
discrimination (Harapan et al., 2013; Henderson et al., 2011).
Stigmatized and discriminatory attitudes among healthcare
professionals were common in neighbouring countries such as China and
Indonesia (Ma et al., 2010; Malaysian Aids Council, 2018). Healthcare
professionals in China had negative biases against patients living with
HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) as they were less willing to interact with PLWHA
compared to hepatitis B patients (Ma et al., 2010). Meanwhile, the level of
stigmatized and discriminatory attitudes towards PLWHA was high among
the healthcare workers in Bandar Aceh, Indonesia due to irrational fear of
HIV transmission and knowledge on transmission and prevention of HIV
(Malaysian Aids Council, 2018).
The first study on Malaysian hospital pharmacists revealed an
unexpected result in which 66.7% of the 75 hospital pharmacists endorsed
a negative attitude towards PLWHA. The author believed that the negative
attitude is influenced by culture, ethnicity, gender, age and urban-rural
locality (Katz et al., 2013).A study carried out among the medical students in

Universiti Putra Malaysia found that pre-clinical students were significantly
more stigmatising towards PLWHA and surprisingly the result was not
associated with the level of knowledge the students possessed (Malcolm et
al., 1998).
HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination attitudes deter the
effectiveness of HIV prevention, testing and treatment to PLHIV (Heyward
et al., 1993). Besides, these stigmas also reduce the quality of treatment

and self-esteem of the patient that compromised PLWHA’s abilities to
successfully adhere to ART (Katz et al., 2013; Kaur, 2015; Khan & Baiq,
2013; Li et al., 2006).ART adherence is the key to HIV viral suppression that

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