Discrimination of HIV victims by society
Here I will try to
discuss some cases of discrimination and all society need to be aware that HIV
is also another disease like cancer and nothing more than that.
Discrimination of HIV victims is the first
thing we should shed to combat the further spread of disease. The reason for
discrimination is the fear that, other people may also contract the virus by dealing
with HIV patients. Also our indian culture does not approve sexual wrongdoings, which is deep-rooted
in our mind. So society thinks, that HIV man committed adultery so he must be punished.
Majority of the HIV spread in india through
prostitutes (95%). But we must keep in mind that the one or a few time mistake someone
committed by having sex with a prostitute, threw him himself into the HIV hell. He may be influenced by other
people at that time to do that blunder. Or he might have been influenced by alcohol and
would have lost his self control. Under various circumstances people do mistakes
but this mistake made him to loose his life in a long time with
suffering.
So being a HIV patient itself is a horrible punishment he got.
Society need not punish him more with discrimination. A person never become sick
until he comes to know that he is sick. As you would have heard or seen that people die,
within days or weeks as soon as they are diagnosed with some terminal illness.
They would have been alive or doing their daily activities or working and
supporting their children & wife if they didn't knew that they have cancer
or any other terminal illness. This is not the case with HIV as it's contagious and the wife should be
protected so the announcement is necessary to protect
further spread. But we need not scare a person to death in doing this. I heard
of 2 cases of immediate death after +ve HIV test (within weeks) due to not
taking food or medicine for fever or other common illness, as the patient thinks
anyway he is going to die in a long term with AIDS.
An HIV patient is not
going to progress to AIDS until he is not cared or malnutrioned or not eating
enough food. There are thousands living with no anti-HIV medication for years
even the US doctors give them 2 year or 3 year to live, death sentence.
People with zero CD4 counts also live as normal for many years. Only thing they cannot
do is having sex with others. Other things they are impaired is hard
sporting activities with other people where there is chance of having bleeding
injuries. They can work as any other work except may be as a barber or as a
baby-sitter, nothing is going to happen. Even today the death patterns predicted
haven't happened in the case of Africa, where millions would be dead as per
predictions. Here I am not trying to promote casual sex or prostitution, but
It's quite worthy to think all HIV patients are not going to die in average 10
years. They scare people with wordings like "a vast majority will progress to
AIDS within 2 to 10 years without medication", but it's not the case. Also there
exists a 5% or more non-progresses which researchers could not find why they
are not progressing even after 30+ years living with
HIV.
There is absolutely no harm in doing the
following things with HIV patients.
1) Talking with them and sharing time with them consoling them about the
future worries they may have. HIV is not spread with sneezing, coughing or
falling the saliva of the patient in any part of your body. Blood & genital
fluids are only the dangerous agents that can spread the HIV. HIV is a very
volatile virus unlike Hepatitis virus which can survive in environment. HIV is
killed or became non-infectious as soon as it looses its host. Even Lab-cultured
HIV (millions of them) also found only to be alive only few seconds in environment. These
high amounts cannot be found even in an acute HIV patients.
This is the reason that nobody contracts HIV from wash basins, or toilets, or by
sharing drinks or eating utensils. Hospitals need not scare of HIV patients as
long as they practice universal precautions. Even in US a year got only 25 healthcare
workers infected after thousands of needle stuck injuries happened. But
more than 1000 infected with various Hepatitis virus in hospital environment.
2) HIV cannot be spread through mosquito bites,
bed bugs or other insect bites. This is proven because as the majority people
infected are in their sexually active age 14-40. It's a common logic that if
the disease spreads through the other way the pattern would have been much
different that more children & Old age people also would have been infected
alike.
3) Disinfecting HIV is very easy with 10% diluted bleach which
will kill all infectious virus. Also drying in sunlight kills all HIV within few
minutes.
4) Hospitals
only need to be more cautious. They must ensure the disposable latex gloves, syringes
etc.. are not recycled. They must buy these things from
reputed vendors and any wrong doing in this area must be brought to the notice
of police. While examining patients injuries or dressing them need to use new
latex disposable gloves. In case of a chance of splash of Blood, Goggles &
mouth cover must be in place.
5) Mental health is most important for HIV
patients. That's why so many mental health institutions always report fresh HIV
cases. Most of the patients are depressed and need medication. Also HIV patients
eventually need to quit smoking & alcohol so mental health support & counseling
is necessary.
I personally believe that if the stigma &
discrimination is removed there are more chances HIV people will live more
healthy & productive life. Also HIV patients must join together for
self-help and build hospice facilities for them and others to live & die in
a dignified way. In this world where dogs & cats are better cared by SPCA
like organizations but in the case of humans, it's strange that nobody is
compassionate to them when they are in crisis.
Single-handed
crusade against AIDS
Copyright 2003©2004 Manoj at
http://manoj.bizhosting.com/