Monday, November 26, 2012
HIV, AIDS, World AIDS Day 3 Dec 12
NYTimes: New H.I.V. Cases Falling in Some Poor Nations, but Treatment Still Lags
A U.N. report showed that 2.5 million people became infected last year, while only 1.4 million received lifesaving treatment for the first time.
http://nyti.ms/WvcC2j
Technology Improvements Undermining Efforts to Reduce Spread of HIV
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/25/world/asia/indian-prostitutes-new-autonomy-imperils-aids-fight.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20121125
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/hiv-infections-fall-un-says-ending-aids-feasible/
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While prevention is key, that is no excuse for treatment to fall off. The blessings we have as Americans are amazing, our access to health care even at its worse is still better than in 3rd world countries. As educated members of the USA we need to embrace our role as a world leader and help fight these diseases. Treatment is so important to reduce the spread of disease and to save lives. Prevention without treatment for the disease is an incomplete process.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree with you more. Also I don't think that technology should be the main source of the blame as to why things aren't being kept track of as well. It is one of those things that makes you wish that the funding was there continually for the funding and the appropriate measures of keeping this disease at bay.
DeleteI agree that we need to focus more on prevention. I think that since we live in the United States, we feel safe from this disease. While in all reality we are not. It would be smart for the government to put some money into preventative advertising toward this disease.
DeleteI agree with Beth that prevention is definitely key in this situation. The executive director says that they are moving from despair to hope, which almost sounds promising. However, the big issue is money. It is good that people are getting lifesaving treatment, but as the number of people receiving the treatment grows so does the number of people with HIV.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the link dealing with Indian Prostitutes goes, it seems like they are blaming cellphones for complicating efforts to prevent aids. Cellphones are allowing prostitutes (women) to keep a lot more of their money, but at the same time they are making HIV prevention programs more challenging.
I think that we (The U.S.) need to step up and help do whatever we can to fight the diseases and help with the HIV prevention programs. By doing this we will ultimately decrease or reduce the spread of the disease and hopefully save more people's lives.
I agree with what everyone else has been saying about prevention: it is most definitely key.
DeleteIt frustrates me to hear that they're blaming the lack of progress on something else though, like cellphones. While they may be hindering progress I think we need to step up and fins a way around it. If people made excuses for why they couldn't make progess then there wouldn't be any progress.
It is great to see that the numbers are falling, but 2.5 million newly infected people is still a lot! From reading the first article, though, there has been a lot of progress. Treatment needs to continue and the number of people treated definitely needs to be higher, but like I said, there has been so much progress made. We can't expect the number of people newly infected to drop to 0 and the number of people treated at 100% overnight. Treatment on high-risk groups and education on prevention needs to continue and to expand. I agree with Elizabeth, prevention without treatment for the disease is an incomplete process. So, hopefully, as the article mentioned, there will be more donors and money provided soon for treatment and prevention programs. There's a lot of awareness in the U.S. and other industrialized countries now for HIV/AIDS so these countries need to make sure they have room in their budget to help with these life-threatening diseases. We need to fight for a healthier world- not just for HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention but also other life-threatening diseases and conditions.
ReplyDeleteTechnology improvements are often a double-edged sword. As Chelsea pointed out - for the prostitutes cellphones appear to be a positive thing because their work conditions are better and they get to keep more money. Often what is not experienced first hand - i.e HIV in this case - is pushed to the back of the people's minds and not considered as a negative. Unfortunately, it appears that the higher income will result in a death sentence for many of these prostitutes and their clients. It is a shame that a system that was working for the reduction of the spread of the disease was undermined in this fashion. In our culture, the advent of the cellphone is seen as a positive event also. Don't get me wrong, it is a huge convenience and has many good qualities. But since it has become a staple for everyone, new deaths are now being added to the statistics due to its use while driving. Another example we have talked about in class: advances in medicine which allow us to live much longer than anyone ever anticipated have created many negative effects also. So as with the prostitutes in India, we often trade out one good thing for another and it is usually not an outcome that anyone would have considered when the technology was being developed.
ReplyDeletefrom SHAD
ReplyDeleteHIV, AIDS, World AIDS Day 3 Dec 12
I agree with Beth and Chelsea. Prevention is a key aspect, but without treatment the people already infected are being sacrificed. This violates the natural rights that everyone is entitled to, life, liberty, and property. I feel that the best solution to this problem is to use prevention methods along with treatment until a cure is found. People cannot just be sacrificed to a disease because the number of infected people goes down when the currently infected are refused treatment.
I could not agree more with Beth and Morgan, primarly prevention is the key, but technology should be to blame for the resources and studies not being performed to treat this disastrous disease. As a nurse, teaching individuals about prevention is key. Especially during check ups and hospital visits. It is important to fight this disease and like Beth said we should be proud to live in the USA and be world leaders to help with these diseases.
DeleteI have cared for patients with HIV and AIDS in the hospital before, and it is more common than you would think. It is not just for homosexuals or people in Africa, it is here all around us. It is important to teach about the spread of the disease and how we can prevent people from getting it. The medications for this disease are very very expensive, and if we could prevent the spread, we in turn decrease the number of people who need treatment for this disease. Last year in Microbiology we watched a video on HIV in Africa and India and in India, they give out condoms for free to people in order to help prevent the spread of the disease that is becoming increasingly present there. I think this is a good idea, although slightly promoting the sexual act, if you are going to do it you might as well be safe in the process. What do you guys think about this?
ReplyDeleteI too believe prevention is key. I also must agree with Shad which I think was well said about how it is wrong and going against natural rights for us just sacrificing these people when we have the opportunity and technology to help. As fellow human beings it is wrong. But where I will disagree is that it just shouldn't be the US who is intervening but all of the UN should be intervening to help with this situation. It is the humane thing to do. But America as great as it is, is still going through tough times and we should take more care of home right now and fix our problems instead of taking on everyone else' problems. What I mean by that is America should help along with the UN but shouldn't be the sole country doing so especially when we have so many problems of our own at home.
ReplyDeleteAs everyone else has said, prevention is the key to stopping this disease. Awareness of AIDs presence in the US has definitely decreased over the years, which has lead people to believe that it is less of a threat. This disease is obviously still a major threat not only in places like africa and among the homosexual community, but to everyone around the world. The biggest problem is that people do not get tested for HIV till it is too late. Also India cannot blame cellphones for the reason why prostitutes are spreading HIV. The people of India need to be better informed of the disease so that they realize its dangers so that they'll wear condoms and get tested for HIV.
ReplyDeleteI believe and hope that it is eventually possible to eliminate AIDS. This has become one of the leading problems in the world. The fact that it is now being heavily addressed is great progress (a step in the right direction). However, it will take a lot of effort over many years by countries all over to fix the issue. Awareness has also increased and is extremely important to, as Beth said, saving lives. I think that people are more willing to help now if they are able to. The goal is to keep moving forward and not back track now that there are procedures that have been put into place and are helping. I agree with Amanda in that the free distribution of condoms in places where this is a major issue would help. Like she said, if it is going to happen, it will happen no matter what so why not give people a chance to be safe about it (those who do not have access or can not afford protection). As terrible as it is, this is a way of life for some people, and they will not stop until they are forced to. Therefore, giving a safer option would most likely yield a positive outcome.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to HIV, it isnt as prominent in the United States as it is in other parts of the world. The problem with this disease is obviously once you have it, theres no getting rid of it. Treatment does need to be improved, however it gets tough because with things like Cancer and HIV, it can get very expensive. And in this country especially where its not as prominent, people dont tend to fund research for it as much because of the many forms of cancer that take peoples lives on a daily basis in this country.
ReplyDeleteWhile this may not be on the topic of US and it's concerns with HIV/AIDS.... but I remember during microbiology class we would watch documentaries paid for by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. One in particular dealt with the spread of HIV/AIDS and STDs. In tokyo there was a man who would pass out condoms to random people along with leaving bowls of them in the "Night Life" city. While it's great to know that there has been a decrease in HIV/AIDs in US it still is prevalent in other countries. Upon searching the B&M foundations website I came across different methods currently they have a an ad posted about circumcision and how getting it done can reduce chances of HIV.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.gatesfoundation.org/hivaids/Pages/default.aspx
This is the series that we watched... It just came to me...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.pbs.org/wgbh/rxforsurvival/