HIV-Related Stigma by Healthcare Providers in the United States: A Systematic Review

Reducing HIV-related stigma may enhance the quality of HIV prevention and care services and is a national prevention goal. The objective of this systematic review was to identify studies of HIV-related stigma among healthcare providers. For studies published between 2010 and 2017, we: (1) searched databases using our keywords, (2) excluded nonpeer reviewed studies, (3) limited the findings to the provider perspective and studies conducted in the United States, (4) extracted and summarized the data, and (5) conducted a contextual review to identify common themes. Of 619 studies retrieved, 6 were included, with 3 themes identified: (1) attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors (n=6), (2) quality of patient care (n=3), and (3) education and training (n=2). Factors associated with HIV-related stigma varied by gender, race, provider category, and clinical setting. Providers with limited recent HIV-stigma training were more likely to exhibit stigmatizing behaviors toward patients. Developing provider-centered stigma-reduction interventions may help advance national HIV prevention and care goals.