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Sustained Sobriety: A Qualitative Study of Persons with HIV and Chronic Hepatitis C Coinfection and a History of Problematic Drinking

AIDS and Behavior volume 25, pages 1083–1093 (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

For persons diagnosed with HIV and who are coinfected with hepatitis C virus (HCV), chronic liver disease is a leading cause of death and excessive consumption of alcohol can be a contributing factor. Little is known about the factors these individuals identify as key to achieving sustained sobriety. In this qualitative study, fourteen HIV/HCV coinfected persons who endorsed past problematic drinking were interviewed about their path to sustained sobriety. In open-ended interviews, participants often described their drinking in the context of polysubstance use and their decision to become sober as a singular response to a transcendent moment or a traumatic event. All articulated specific, concrete strategies for maintaining sobriety. The perceived effect of the HIV or HCV diagnosis on sobriety was inconsistent, and medical care as an influence on sobriety was rarely mentioned. Qualitative interviews may offer new insights on interventions and support strategies for heavy-drinking persons with HIV/HCV coinfection.

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Funding

Funding for this study was provided by NIAAA Grant R01 AA023726 awarded to Dr. Stein.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, University of Washington, 325 Ninth Avenue Box 359930, Seattle, WA, 98104, USA

    Abigail Howell & H. Nina Kim

  2. Section of General Internal Medicine, CARE Unit, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    Audrey Lambert

  3. Department of Health Law, Policy and Management, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Audrey Lambert & Michael D. Stein

  4. Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA

    Megan M. Pinkston, Claire E. Blevins, Debra S. Herman & Ethan Moitra

  5. Department of Psychology, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA, USA

    Jumi Hayaki

Authors
  1. Abigail Howell
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  2. Audrey Lambert
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  3. Megan M. Pinkston
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  4. Claire E. Blevins
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  5. Jumi Hayaki
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  6. Debra S. Herman
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  7. Ethan Moitra
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  8. Michael D. Stein
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  9. H. Nina Kim
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Contributions

AH and AL contributed equally to this work as lead authors.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to H. Nina Kim.

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The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee (University of Washington Institutional Review Board) and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Howell, A., Lambert, A., Pinkston, M.M. et al. Sustained Sobriety: A Qualitative Study of Persons with HIV and Chronic Hepatitis C Coinfection and a History of Problematic Drinking. AIDS Behav 25, 1083–1093 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-020-03067-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-020-03067-x

Keywords

  • HIV
  • Chronic hepatitis C
  • Alcohol
  • Sobriety
  • Qualitative interview