ArticlePloS one2018
"I was referred from the other side": Gender and HIV testing among older South Africans living with HIV.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Men missing from the HIV care continuum in sub-Saharan Africa: a meta-analysis and meta-synthesis.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2022Pooled it
- Sex Differences in HIV Testing among Older Adults in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review.BioMed research international · 2021Pooled it
- "It's like it's the old boys club"-the age-related experiences of diverse older women living with HIV: A scoping review and consultative exercise.HIV medicine · 2025Article
- Migrant men and HIV care engagement in Johannesburg, South Africa.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Social network characteristics and HIV testing among older adults in South Africa.Ageing and society · 2023Article
- Navigating Life With HIV as an Older Adult on the Kenyan Coast: Perceived Health Challenges Seen Through the Biopsychosocial Model.International journal of public health · 2023Article
- Antiretroviral therapy and aging as resources for managing and resisting HIV-related stigma in rural South Africa.SSM. Qualitative research in health · 2022Article
- Social Support for Improved ART Adherence and Retention in Care among Older People Living with HIV in Urban South Africa: A Complex Balance between Disclosure and Stigma.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Progress towards the UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets among persons aged 50 and older living with HIV in 13 African countries.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2022Article
- "I was still very young": agency, stigma and HIV care strategies at school, baseline results of a qualitative study among youth in rural Kenya and Uganda.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2022Article
- Sex differences in HIV testing among elders in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review protocol.Systematic reviews · 2022Article
- Delayed presentation of HIV among older individuals: a growing problem.The lancet. HIV · 2022Review
- Uptake of HIV testing among aging adults in Agincourt, South Africa: perception of community, social network, and individual characteristics.African journal of AIDS research : AJAR · 2022Article
- From "Secret" to "Sensitive Issue": Shifting Ideas About HIV Disclosure Among Middle-Aged and Older Rural South Africans in the Era of Antiretroviral Treatment.Journal of aging and health · 2022Article
- 'Too old to test?': A life course approach to HIV-related risk and self-testing among midlife-older adults in Malawi.BMC public health · 2021Article
- Development of a Tablet Computer Application for HIV Testing and Risk History Calendar for Use With Older Africans.Frontiers in reproductive health · 2021Article
- Newly diagnosed HIV positive children: a unique index case to improve HIV diagnosis and linkage to care of parents.AIDS care · 2020Article
- The relationships between cognitive function, literacy and HIV status knowledge among older adults in rural South Africa.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2020Article
- Putting women in the centre of the global HIV response is key to achieving epidemic control!Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2020Review
- Prevalence and determinants of recent HIV testing among older persons in rural Uganda: a cross-sectional study.BMC public health · 2020Article
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2 authors.
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Abstract
South Africa has a Universal Test and Treat (UTT) policy in place to ensure that everyone tests for HIV and can access treatment if they test positive. The aim of this study is to document the pathways that older South Africans who are living with HIV take to access testing and treatment in this context. Despite the aging of the HIV epidemic in South Africa and clear evidence that testing older persons (over age 50) is necessary, very little is known about the circumstances under which older persons test for HIV or their motivations for doing so. In this study, we analyze 21 qualitative, in-depth interviews with women and men aged 50 and over who are living with HIV from two townships outside of Cape Town. Using grounded theory to specify emerging themes, we find similarities and differences between older men and women in their pathways to testing. Men primarily test for HIV when their spouse is diagnosed or in connection with TB testing and treatment. Older women, who are more likely to be widowed or divorced, often test for HIV only when they are symptomatic or not responding appropriately to care for non-communicable diseases. Most importantly, we find that older South Africans do not seek testing as a response to risk. Instead, older men and women test only once they are symptomatic and referred by a provider, or as a result of a partner's status. Our respondents, particularly the women, expressed "shock" and confusion at learning they were HIV-positive because they do not see themselves as at risk of acquiring HIV. Because the benefits of UTT are greatest with early detection and treatment, older persons' tendency to test at such a late stage of illness decreases the individual and population level advantages of UTT. More research is needed to understand older persons' risk and testing behavior so that policy and programs include HIV testing messages that reach this population.
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