Letting Them Die: Why HIV/AIDS Prevention Programmes Fail

Abstract

Reviews the book "Letting Them Die: Why HIV/AIDS Prevention Programmes Fail," by Catherine Campbell (2003). The book explores the processes by which a multi-faceted and theoretically informed HIV prevention programme in Summertown, South African appeared not to work. The programme aimed to involve local youth, mineworkers and sex workers in peer education in order that people from these groups could modify their behaviour and enhance their sexual health. It also aimed to bring together representatives of these groups with more powerful stakeholders in order to develop a local community that would support such behaviour change. The book explores these questions in fascinating if depressing detail, drawing out how wider structural factors such as the economic incentives for migrant work and the alienation of sex workers impeded HIV prevention efforts. The main shortcoming of the book is that it is based on an exemplary process evaluation, but a less exemplary evaluation of effectiveness. This limitation aside, the book is a major achievement, setting the standard for rigorous evaluation of planning and delivering HIV prevention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)