Life of PLHIV under martial law

Year of research: 2022
Customer: ICF "Alliance for Public Health"

The study aimed to collect data on the main needs and current challenges faced by PLHIV under martial law and identify possible ways to address them.

The study focused on collecting information on the following key aspects of PLHIV’s lives, including changes during the war.

  • Access to necessary medical services, both related and not directly related to HIV status: in particular, ART, diagnosis and treatment of TB and other opportunistic infections, OST (if necessary), and other primary and secondary healthcare services.
  • Access to PrEP for PLHIV partners (in case of discordant couples).
  • Ensuring physical safety.
  • Sources of income and financial situation.
  • Psychological well-being.
  • Sources of support (financial, psychological, etc.).
  • Current needs for care and help, including psychological support, professional counseling, etc., and interest in support from PLHIV mentors.
  • Other essential changes in PLHIV’s lives (e.g., the need to change their place of residence due to the war).
  • Information sources on health (including access to ART and other medical services) that respondents currently use and sources from which they would like to receive such information in the future.

Study geography: Kyiv, Poltava, Kirovohrad, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, and Zaporizhzhia regions.

The study used a qualitative data collection strategy, including:

  1. Semi-structured interviews with PLHIV. The interviews were conducted by phone. A total of 100 PLHIV were interviewed. PLHIV of different ages and genders, belonging to diverse key populations (e.g., PLHIV-PWID, PLHIV-IDPs, etc.) and living in different regions of Ukraine (excluding the temporarily occupied territories), were involved in the study.
  2. Focus groups with employees of HIV service NGOs. In total, 4 FGDs were conducted online via Zoom.

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