HIV, medical cultures and ethnic discriminations: access to antiretroviral treatment and medical care of indigenous peoples in Latin America

Abstract

Results presented concern to the inequity in health care and antiretroviral treatment and testing CD4 and viral load access of the indigenous population with HIV in Latin America from a documentary research. We analyze and discussed the differentiated inequity in the access and health care of the indigenous population, in contrast with non-indigenous population, due to the juxtaposition of factors such as structural violence, gender, racism and discrimination on the health condition, from the material and symbolic configuration of the health service addressed to the mestizo population in ethnic and racially stratified societies. In particular, we analyze the social representations of physicians related to the users, and their correlation in their clinical practice; the centralization of the CD4 cell count testing and viral load and its impact on the access of indigenous people who live in rural areas.The impact on the access to health services and the health care of the absence of professionals translators and interpreters, linguistic and cultural, on health centers; and, finally, some of the intercultural praxis who try to resolve these problems.