Critical reflection on the integration of HIV into the health science curriculum

Abstract

Health professionals need to have a multi-layered, nuanced understanding of HIV to become aware of the complexity of HIV and how it interacts with all aspects of life, ultimately affecting health and wellbeing. In this article, we critically reflect how we, as Health Sciences lecturers, took on the challenge to integrate HIV education into a multi-disciplinary module presented to second-year health science students. These strategies included: (1) digital recordings on HIV and stigma, (2) HIV as 'a vehicle' to understand health-related concepts, and (3) a transdisciplinary health promotion project. We adopted a participatory, engaging pedagogy where students were encouraged to interact through critical discussion to develop critical thinking skills around their own attitudes regarding HIV and the impact on their professional practice. Through critically reflecting on their intersectionality of HIV with many aspects of health and wellbeing, we aimed to deepen students' understanding of HIV and the effect it has on the lives of their future patients.