Abstract:

Despite legal guarantees under Republic Act No. 11166, people living with HIV (PLHIV) navigate complex social, spatial, and structural hurdles that heavily shape their treatment retention. In Iligan City, rising diagnoses place unprecedented pressure on local treatment hubs. Synthesizing Andersen’s Behavioral Model and Earnshaw and Chaudoir’s HIV Stigma Framework, this qualitative case study investigates the intersection between individual care navigation and institutional facility readiness. Utilizing semi-structured interviews with approximately ten (10) PLHIV alongside key informant interviews with ten (10) healthcare providers (including Hub Directors, counselors, and case managers), data are analyzed through six-phase thematic analysis under strict data privacy protocols (RA 10173 and RA 11166). The inquiry reveals how patient demographic realities, economic travel strains, and spatial stigma intersect with facility staffing limits and resource bottlenecks to alter care continuity. Furthermore, it highlights how the relational safety of client–provider interactions serve as a crucial buffer against systemic institutional strain. Ultimately, the study bridges patient narratives and administrative realities to offer localized, data-driven insights for optimizing facility carrying capacity and improving long-term care retention in secondary urban centers.

Biography :

Promise Froilan Jade T. Lumapas is a sociology researcher and assistant in the Philippines. He focusus on community organizing, qualitative analysis, and regional social history. Currently collaborating on major institutional research projects, Lumapas specializes in applied social statistics and data-driven community development within Southern Philippines

Department of Sociology, College of Arts and Social Sciences, Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology, Andres Bonifacio Ave, Tibanga, Iligan City, Lanao del Norte, Philippines, 9200