Addressing Ebola-related Stigma: Lessons Learned from HIV/AIDS

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Abstract
BackgroundHIV/AIDS and Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) are contemporary epidemics associated with significant social stigma in which communities affected suffer from social rejection, violence, and diminished quality of life.ObjectiveTo compare and contrast stigma related to HIV/AIDS and EVD, and strategically think how lessons learned from HIV stigma can be applied to the current EVD epidemic.MethodsTo identify relevant articles about HIV/AIDS and EVD-related stigma, we conducted an extensive literature review using multiple search engines. PubMed was used to search for relevant peer-reviewed journal articles and Google for online sources. We also consulted the websites of the World Health Organization (WHO), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health to retrieve up-to-date information about EVD and HIV/AIDS.ResultsMany stigmatizing attitudes and behaviors directed towards those with EVD are strikingly similar to those with HIV/AIDS but there are significant differe...