dmcanzi@watdcsu.waterloo.edu (David Canzi) (09/08/89)
(I originally intended to use the following excerpts to bolster an
argument that, since so little of HICN is related to AIDS, it shouldn't
be crossposted here. But it occurs to me that picking out the relevant
parts of HICN and reposting them separately is a worthwhile service.
I'm not yet decided as to whether to make a habit of it...)
GROUPS JOIN ON AIDS BOOKLET:
Fifteen major health and education organizations have joined in producing a
booklet of guidelines called "Someone at School Has AIDS." The book includes
recommendations administrators, teachers and parents should follow when a
child or staff member at their school is found to have the AIDS virus. The
booklet will be released Sept. 6.
Patients don't want to be treated by a doctor with AIDS
Most Americans said they would look for a new doctor if they found out their
family physician was infected with the AIDS virus, according to a recent
survey.
A team of researchers at the University of California at San Francisco
interviewed 2,000 Americans nationwide, seeking opinions about HIV infection,
the cause of AIDS. Fifty-six percent of those called said they would change
physicians if they learned their doctor had HIV infection and 25 percent said
they'd switch from a doctor they believed was treating patients with HIV
infection.
The latter finding is especially disturbing, because the need for
physicians from all specialties to provide care to AIDS patients is growing.
Some doctors are reluctant to treat HIV patients for fear it will hurt their
regular practice. If healthy people shun doctors who merely treat HIV-
infected patients, it could add to the growing burden of providing medical
care for AIDS patients, the researchers concluded.
Interestingly, many people who said they would leave the practice of a
physician infected with HIV also said they know the virus wouldn't be
transmitted through contact in the doctor's office.
Even though knowledge about AIDS is growing and most people understand
that the infection doesn't spread through casual contact, survey results
demonstrate the need for more public education about AIDS.
Glove shortage abating
The acute national shortage of medical gloves, which increased sharply in l987
with stringent infection control measures, has abated, according to the
American Association of Hospital Dentists.
Foreign and domestic suppliers have increased their manufacturing output
to meet the escalating demand. However, purchasers are complaining that the
quality of many gloves has substantially deteriorated.
As a result, the federal government has initiated a regulatory process
that will lead to its testing batches of nonsterile patient examination gloves
and possibly seizing those that prove defective. It is feared that this
impending quality control crackdown by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
will rekindle the shortage.
As of April l3, the FDA is revoking exemptions that applied to examination
gloves regarding filing of premarket notifications and compliance with current
good manufacturing practice regulations. These exemptions were granted in
l980 because no adverse experiences had been related to patient examination
gloves. Also, the role of gloves as a protective barrier against HIV
transmission was not the public health concern it is today, and the risks
associated with glove failure were not as well understood.
Manufacturers now will be required to include descriptions of product
testing, methodology, the standard employed in making the gloves, as well as
the "acceptable quality level."
The FDA may reconsider reinstituting the exemptions if, over time, the
agency finds that gloves are meeting safety and effectiveness criteria.
[Excerpted from a list of bulletin board systems:]
***** CALIFORNIA *****
AIDS Info BBS 415-626-1246 2400 8N1 * A CASFA 8/14/89
***** LOUISIANA *****
Tulane Med Center AIDS 504-584-1654 2400 8N1 A 8/14/89
[One of the discussions available via FIDONET:]
AIDS National Discussion
--
David Canzi