Stigma

Stigma

Stigma leads to people feeling diminished, devalued and dehumanised, and creates an invisible barrier to the support they need.

Three main components make up stigma: our thoughts, feelings and behaviours.

Pre-existing misinformation and prejudices lead to feelings of fear and dislike, which in turn cause behaviours that ostracise and isolate people.

We may be most familiar with Public Stigma, the negative attitudes held by the general population, we may not be so familiar with institutional or internalised stigma. Institutional stigma refers to governmental or organisational policies, procedures and laws that, perhaps unintentionally, discriminate against people with a particular characteristic.

When a person starts to believe and personally accept the negative perceptions, this is called internalised or self-stigma. Self-stigma is linked to low mood, emotional distress, low self-esteem and motivation for self care which can result in lack of engagement with the treatment and care they need to stay well.

We can all make a difference. Through education, understanding and compassion, and challenging stigma and discrimination when we see or hear it, we can eliminate it.

We are proud to work with partners in the Alcohol & Drug Partnerships to promote a culture of kindness, compassion and hope to tackle stigma and discrimination and embed trauma informed approaches across Tayside.

We support the Language Matters campaign Language Matters Dundee Drug and Alcohol Partnership ‘Alcohol and Drug Prevention Framework Online’ (dundeeadp.co.uk) which recognises the use of language can negatively impact on a person’s recovery from drug use, their personal wellbeing and also increase feelings of isolation.

HIV Stigma

HIV treatment and care have made giant leaps forward in the past 40 years; a person diagnosed with HIV today, can enjoy the same life experiences and opportunities as anyone else.

These developments have turned a once life-threatening diagnosis into a condition that can be managed as part of everyday life. However, despite these advancements, stigma associated with HIV remains a real threat to public health.

Common misconceptions about HIV can have a profound impact on the lives of people living with HIV. Research shows that a third of people would not kiss someone with HIV and almost half of people in Scotland (43%) would be ashamed to tell someone they had HIV.

In the context of HIV, stigma can discourage people from testing and finding out their status or accessing treatment and support. HIV stigma can even lead to people stopping treatment. The impact of stigma is more detrimental than the impact of HIV.

I Pledge

By working with partners, utilising education, open dialogue, and compassion, we can foster and encourage understanding, dispel myths and misconceptions, and ignite a conversation that encourages empathy, kindness and support over judgment and fear, where everyone is embraced with dignity and respect.

As part of our Fast Track Cities work we are taking forward actions across Tayside to address and eliminate stigma including the iPledge that asks people to ‘Pledge’ to:

• Wise up– learn the facts of HIV
• Speak up– when they see or hear HIV stigma and,
• Reach out– around HIV stigma.

If you experience or witness stigma you can report it here.

Report HIV Stigma

People living with or at risk of HIV experience stigma and discrimination and the wrong language perpetuates this. We strive to use non-stigmatising language and follow the guidance of the People First Charter. There are no fixed rules and what is considered ‘correct’ will vary over time, and between individuals. We are aware that language tends to evolve rapidly and reflect societal attitude changes. If people read this in the far future, we hope they consider this and our good intentions in using the most widely used and recognised terms available to us at the time.