"... [I]f I can [be] infected now that means I am going to die ...": an explorative study focusing on vulnerable, immunocompromised groups and caregivers experiences and perceptions of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa

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dc.date.accessioned 2023-05-29T13:03:44Z
dc.date.available 2023-05-29T13:03:44Z
dc.date.issued 2023-03-22 en
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/20245
dc.description.abstract In this paper, we explored how vulnerable, immunocompromised groups and caregivers of the elderly experienced and perceived the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa. Semi-structured interviews were conducted remotely between the 5th and the 18th of April 2020 in the three South African provinces hardest hit by Covid-19, namely Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape. In total, 60 qualitative key informant interviews and one focus group discussion were conducted. Study participants expressed concerns for elderly people and people with underlying health conditions because of their increased vulnerability to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). People living with HIV expressed an increased fear of infection following the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa. The sidelining of healthcare services and stock-outs of medication proved to be an added concern in particular for vulnerable and immunocompromised groups. Overall, the data suggest that the fear of infection is ubiquitous for people who live in unstable environments such as overcrowded townships and informal settlements. Given the increased fears of infection brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, the mental health of vulnerable communities and those caring for them becomes an added burden for people living in unstable environments. en
dc.format.medium Print en
dc.subject CAREGIVERS en
dc.subject COVID-19 en
dc.subject PANDEMIC en
dc.subject DISADVANTAGED GROUPS en
dc.subject IMMUNOCOMPROMISED GROUPS en
dc.subject ELDERLY en
dc.title "... [I]f I can [be] infected now that means I am going to die ...": an explorative study focusing on vulnerable, immunocompromised groups and caregivers experiences and perceptions of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa en
dc.type Journal Article en
dc.description.version Y en
dc.ProjectNumber N/A en
dc.Volume 20(1) en
dc.BudgetYear 2022/23 en
dc.ResearchGroup Human and Social Capabilities en
dc.SourceTitle Journal of Social Aspects of HIV/AIDS en
dc.ArchiveNumber 9812739 en
dc.URL http://ktree.hsrc.ac.za/doc_read_all.php?docid=26667 en
dc.PageNumber Online en
dc.outputnumber 14243 en
dc.bibliographictitle North, A., Cloete, A., Ramlagan, S., Manyaapelo , T., Ngobeni, A., Vondo , N. & Sekgala, D. (2023) "... [I]f I can [be] infected now that means I am going to die ...": an explorative study focusing on vulnerable, immunocompromised groups and caregivers experiences and perceptions of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa. Journal of Social Aspects of HIV/AIDS. 20(1):Online. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/20245 en
dc.publicationyear 2023 en
dc.contributor.author1 North, A. en
dc.contributor.author2 Cloete, A. en
dc.contributor.author3 Ramlagan, S. en
dc.contributor.author4 Manyaapelo , T. en
dc.contributor.author5 Ngobeni, A. en
dc.contributor.author6 Vondo , N. en
dc.contributor.author7 Sekgala, D. en


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