This toolkit was developed by Women’s Health in Women’s Hands Community Health Centre.

HERE’S HOW THE AUTHORS DESCRIBE THIS TOOLKIT:

Disclosure of HIV positive status is an important strategy for reducing HIV transmission, however, when this is the only focus, HIV disclosure can be a traumatizing, isolating, and painful experience. In order to adequately and meaningfully engage people living with HIV to disclose their status, other factors must be taken into consideration. Disclosure can be an empowering experience for people living with HIV if there is adequate support and counselling throughout the process. This tool is meant to promote the understanding of challenges people living with HIV face in terms of disclosure and how service providers and organizations can strive to alleviate some of the associated stress.

The model was developed through a process of knowledge exchange with community stakeholders through three distinct research phases:

1. The development and pilot testing of the model: The process began with a literature review, a series of focus groups, and key informant interviews to develop the model. Participants, service providers, and peers implemented and participated in the disclosure model in the pilot testing phase.
2. The development of the integration guidelines: The process began with a literature review and consultation with our partner organizations on how best to integrate the disclosure model in everyday practice.
3. The expansion and roll-out phase: Focus groups with youth, heterosexual black men, Gay/MSM in Toronto, and interviews in Waterloo and Niagara were conducted to determine the adaptability of the model.