Macro Ecological Factors Affecting Adolescents. Impacts of HIV on Adolescents.

The environment and its inherent qualities play a significant role in the overall development of a child. As children grow, they are concurrently exposed to different surroundings. They move outward from the basic home environment, the school ecological system, and, eventually, the broader cultural and societal organization. The environmental systems are interdependent, and they influence each other to form the mental and social composition of children and adolescents. Different ecological systems enable children to socialize in various ways. This is evident in the diverse personality and belief variances displayed by people. In specific, the macroecological system comprises of cultural values, financial factors, community settings, as well as political and economic factors surrounding a child's life. Despite the macro factors being distant and remote, they pose significant positive or negative influences on the child and adolescents.

Ecological Topic

The United States is experiencing a massive silent cultural revolution that has not only affected the adults but has also influenced the younger generation significantly. People have developed new ideas on what constitutes acceptable behavior. For instance, a bigger number of Americans now support homosexual marriages, drug and substance abuse has become a general trend, and a significant number of adolescents engage in sexual behaviors from a very young age. Unfortunately, this cultural shift has resulted in the widespread of HIV and AIDs among the younger generation. For this reason, adolescent reproductive health in the United States is a concern.

Adolescence is characterized by a biological, neural, and social transition. Notably, the developmental and structural changes expose adolescents to a higher risk of sexually transmitted infections and, more specifically, HIV. Among risk factors and circumstances that put adolescents at risk are child trafficking, coerced sex with elderly people, sexual abuse, and young sex workers. Information from HIV Seroprevalence suggests that in the year 2015, adolescents aged between twelve and twenty-three accounted for 24% of all new HIV diagnosis in the United States. It was further observed that most of the new infections were among gay, lesbian, and bisexual males and females. In addition, HIV related deaths continue to increase among the younger people despite a decrease in the other age groups.

The rampant HIV infections can be attributed to a variety of factors. Firstly, a significant number of young people have multiple sexual partners. Hence, whenever they engage in unprotected sexual behaviors, they become vulnerable to sexually transmitted diseases. Secondly, some adolescents are addicted to drug and substances that involve injections as a form of administering. At the same time, others are homeless, and they choose to have unprotected sex for money, shelter, and drugs, thus substantially increasing their risk. Notably, although many American adolescents choose to have one sexual partner at a time, the numbers add up over time; they select sexual partners from a specific social network. Consequently, sexually transmitted infections cluster in one network.

Impacts of HIV on Adolescents

HIV and AIDs not only affect the adolescent's physical health but also impacts their emotional, mental, and social well-being. Evidently, young people living with HIV undergo a variety of psychosocial stressors over time: from the initial emotional shock of diagnosis to the process of accepting treatment. In addition, adolescents suffering chronic illness are at a higher risk of psychiatric complications including mental health and anxiety. Thus, if not well-taken care of, most victims develop depression, while others contemplate suicide. HIV infection also causes financial constraints on the households affected since most adolescents are still young to support themselves. Hence, their guardians bear all the financial burden including regular medical check-ups and drugs. In fact, many caregivers are unable to work as the disease progresses, thus resulting in an extreme economic strain on the family. Notably, infected adolescents face stigma and discrimination from their peers. They feel different and isolated making them to modify their behaviors in order to fit in. As a result, the adolescents become nonadherent to medication because they are embarrassed to take it publicly. More specifically, HIV impacts the education of the infected adolescent. They are sometimes forced to skip school to get medication; thus, their overall academic performance deteriorates. Moreover, as the disease progresses, the adolescent is forced to accept the possibility of their own mortality. This is not only a challenge to the adolescent but also to their families who find it difficult trying to communicate this sad reality.

Possible Interventions to Reduce HIV and AIDs Infection Among Adolescents

To achieve ultimate effectiveness, HIV and AIDs intervention strategies need to address the biological, structural, and behavioral factors associated with its spread. Examples of a behavioral approach include promoting the use of protection such as condoms among young people as most infections are as a result of unprotected sexual intercourse. Ideally, condoms are an essential form of contraception that prevents the spread of HIV. It is, therefore, vital that schools enact condom-availability programs to ensure that the contraceptive is freely provided. Secondly, sexual health education programs create awareness among adolescents. In the United States, HIV education programs have been implemented in a variety of schools, churches, and youth service training centers. The programs involve medical personnel who offer comprehensive education on sexuality. They further adopt initiatives such as social media campaigns to help reach a more significant number of people.

More importantly, social structural approaches to the spread of HIV should seek to address the root social, political, and economic factors that increase the vulnerability of the adolescents to the virus. For instance, government and medical policymakers should publicize anti-discrimination policies and establish more inclusive strategies that address gay and lesbian couples. This will ensure that similar sexual health services are provided for this minority population. At the same time, the society should focus on ensuring that adolescents remain in school as this minimizes their exposure to child abuse, prostitution, and coerced sex. In fact, a higher level of education is usually associated with more informed sexual habits.

Biomedical approach interventions also aim to minimize the risk of HIV and AIDs spread after or before an infection. Some of the mechanism used include ensuring adherence of the infected adolescents to antiretroviral medication. Effective biomedical intervention entails identifying young people infected with HIV, offering counseling services to them, and retaining them in care. Interestingly, recent developments can now allow health providers to give pre-exposure prophylaxis medication to adolescents put at a risk of infection.

Challenges in Addressing HIV Among Young People

To begin with, sex education for young people is inadequate in most parts of the United States. Very few high schools teach sexual education, and much of the curriculum fails to incorporate sexual health information for homosexual and bisexual people. Also, those who offer sex education fail to start it early enough, hence making it ineffective. Secondly, adolescents continue to engage in risky behaviors, such as increased drug and substance abuse, which propels unsafe sexual acts. A significant number of adolescents admit having used drugs before sexual contact with members of the same sex. Additionally, despite continued awareness, most adolescents still engage in unprotected sex with multiple partners whom they do not know their HIV status.

Thirdly, the stigma and discrimination of those infected with the virus make it difficult for the young victims to openly disclose their status or even discuss with their partners about ways to protect them. Hence, they put more people at risk of infection. Notwithstanding, homosexual adolescents in high schools are sometimes bullied and subjected to other forms of violence. The feeling of unacceptance and isolation may lead gay and lesbian couples to practice unsafe sexual behaviors that expose them to HIV. Arguably, adolescents record the highest rate of sexually transmitted infections (STI) in the United States. Therefore, the presence of another STI increases the likelihood of HIV infection. Lastly, many Americans have become more complacent with the virus. Unlike the past, they no longer view it as a deadly disease. The invention of antiretroviral drugs has made living with HIV more manageable. For this reason, reducing its widespread with such a mentality becomes hard.

Conclusion

In conclusion, macroecological factors play a significant role in shaping the life of an individual. HIV is a global ecological factor. In the recent years, however, HIV has become more rampant among the younger generation. The increased widespread is attributed to the cultural evolution that has seen the adoption of certain practices which place young people at a higher risk of infection. Notably, many HIV-infected adolescents are in denial and lack a reliable social support. Therefore, it is prudent to provide the necessary counseling and care to this group. Besides, to avoid more HIV infections, sexual education should be provided to adolescents early enough, before they become sexually active; right and timely information will enable adolescents to make informed decisions regarding their health. More importantly, every new generation needs to be reminded of the fatal consequences of HIV and AIDs.