Table 1.
Healer Characteristics and Response by Willingness to Treat HIV
| Do you treat patients whom you think have HIV/AIDS? | No (n=111) | Yes (n=28) | Combined (n=139) | p-Valuea |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ageb | 50 (41, 60) | 49.5 (38.8, 55.2) | 50 (40, 59) | 0.3 |
| Missing age, n (%) | 6 (5.4%) | 4 (14.3%) | 10 (7.2%) | |
| Sex, n (%) | 0.3 | |||
| Female | 56 (50.5%) | 18 (64.3%) | 74 (53.2%) | |
| Male | 55 (49.5%) | 10 (35.7%) | 65 (46.8%) | |
| Education (years) | 1 (0, 4) | 2.5 (1, 4) | 2 (0, 4) | 0.08 |
| Number of health trainings attended, n (%) | 0.06 | |||
| 0 | 30 (27.0%) | 3 (10.7%) | 33 (23.7%) | |
| 1 | 49 (44.1%) | 19 (67.9%) | 68 (48.9%) | |
| 2 or more | 32 (28.8%) | 6 (21.4%) | 38 (27.3%) | |
| Location, n (%) | <0.01 | |||
| Alto Molócuè | 39 (35.1%) | 1 (3.6%) | 40 (28.8%) | |
| Inhassunge | 35 (31.5%) | 13 (46.4%) | 48 (34.5%) | |
| Namacurra | 37 (33.3%) | 14 (50.0%) | 51 (36.7%) | |
| Rural/urban, n (%) | 0.3 | |||
| Rural | 66 (59.5%) | 20 (71.4%) | 86 (61.9%) | |
| Urban | 45 (40.5%) | 8 (28.6%) | 53 (38.1%) | |
| Civil status, n (%) | 1.0 | |||
| Divorced | 4 (3.6%) | 1 (3.6%) | 5 (3.6%) | |
| Married | 86 (77.5%) | 22 (78.6%) | 108 (77.7%) | |
| Single | 1 (0.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | 1 (0.7%) | |
| Widowed | 20 (18.0%) | 5 (17.9%) | 25 (18.0%) | |
| Number of spouses | 1 (1, 1) | 1 (1, 1) | 1 (1, 1) | 0.4 |
| Number of previous spouses | 1 (0, 1) | 1 (1, 1) | 1 (0, 1) | 0.5 |
| Number of children | 5 (3, 8) | 6 (4, 7.2) | 5 (3, 8) | 0.4 |
| How long a healer? (years) | 20 (10, 30) | 13.5 (7, 23.5) | 20 (8.5, 30) | 0.2 |
| Why did you become a traditional healer?, n (%) | 0.6 | |||
| Family | 21 (18.9%) | 3 (10.7%) | 24 (17.3%) | |
| Spirits | 70 (63.1%) | 19 (67.9%) | 89 (64.0%) | |
| Family and spirits | 9 (8.1%) | 4 (14.3%) | 13 (9.4%) | |
| Other | 11 (9.9%) | 2 (7.1%) | 13 (9.4%) | |
| Who taught you how to heal?, n (%) | 0.95 | |||
| Traditional healers (TH) | 55 (49.5%) | 13 (46.4%) | 68 (48.9%) | |
| Spirits | 48 (43.2%) | 13 (46.4%) | 61 (43.9%) | |
| TH and spirits | 8 (7.2%) | 2 (7.1%) | 10 (7.2%) | |
| What do you treat?c | ||||
| Illness/symptoms consistent with HIV d | 36 (32.4%) | 10 (35.7%) | 46 (33.1%) | |
| Drugging | 43 (38.7%) | 3 (10.7%) | 46 (33.1%) | |
| Spirit illness | 83 (74.8%) | 23 (82.1%) | 106 (76.3%) | |
| What treatments do you perform?c | ||||
| Herbs | 110 (99.1%) | 28 (100.0%) | 138 (99.3%) | |
| Cut | 94 (84.7%) | 27 (96.4%) | 121 (87.1%) | |
| Dance | 65 (58.6%) | 25 (89.3%) | 90 (64.7%) | |
| Drums | 61 (55.0%) | 24 (85.7%) | 85 (61.2%) | |
| What are the symptoms of HIV/AIDS?c | ||||
| Do not know | 19 (17.1%) | 1 (3.6%) | 20 (14.4%) | |
| Weight loss | 59 (53.2%) | 14 (50.0%) | 73 (52.5%) | |
| Skin changes/rash | 26 (23.4%) | 17 (60.7%) | 43 (30.9%) | |
| Body malaise | 49 (44.1%) | 14 (50.0%) | 63 (45.3%) | |
| Diarrhea | 23 (20.7%) | 10 (35.7%) | 33 (23.7%) | |
| Fevers | 7 (6.3%) | 4 (14.3%) | 11 (7.9%) | |
| Mouth sores | 1 (0.9%) | 2 (7.1%) | 3 (2.2%) | |
| TB | 15 (13.5%) | 5 (17.9%) | 20 (14.4%) | |
| How do people get infected with HIV/AIDS?c | ||||
| Sex | 82 (73.9%) | 27 (96.4%) | 109 (78.4%) | |
| Razors | 38 (34.2%) | 9 (32.1%) | 47 (33.8%) | |
| Mother to child | 2 (1.8%) | 0 (0.0%) | 2 (1.4%) | |
| Blood | 5 (4.5%) | 5 (17.9%) | 10 (7.2%) | |
| Needles | 13 (11.7%) | 5 (17.9%) | 18 (12.9%) | |
| What recommendations do you give to people who want to avoid HIV/AIDS?c | ||||
| Condoms | 41 (36.9%) | 18 (64.3%) | 59 (42.4%) | |
| Do not share razors | 10 (9.0%) | 2 (7.1%) | 12 (8.6%) | |
| Have one partner | 54 (48.6%) | 12 (42.9%) | 66 (47.5%) | |
| Get tested | 3 (2.7%) | 0 (0.0%) | 3 (2.2%) | |
| Believe there are conditions that a healer treats better than a doctor | 49 (44.1%) | 22 (78.6%) | 71 (51.1%) | |
| Positive experience at clinic | 107 (96.4%) | 28 (100.0%) | 135 (97.1%) | |
To compare the distribution of study characteristics by willingness to treat HIV, the authors employ χ2 tests. Similarly, the authors use a two-sample rank sum test for continuous variables by willingness to treat HIV.
Continuous variables are reported as median (interquartile range).
Percentages may total greater than 100% because multiple answers may be provided.
Healers listed illnesses and symptoms they treat that were coded into broad categories. Illnesses and symptoms consistent with possible HIV infection (but not limited to HIV) included fever, weight loss, general malaise, skin lesions, and persistent cough.
HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; AIDS, acquired immune deficiency syndrome.