HIV & AIDS Education in the Emergency Services

HIV & AIDS Education, counseling & support services in the emergency medical service environment

Introduction

• Our presentation is about historical ground and theories of origin of human immunodefiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
• We going to briefly discuss HIV/AIDS education counseling and testing, support service in emergency medical service environment.
• We also going to touch on the background presentation measures and management including transmittion from one person to another (mayoclinic, 2014).

Origin of HIV & AIDS

The origin of HIV and AIDS pandemic has been traced to the 1950’s in the city of Kinshasa, the capital city of Democratic Republic of Congo.

The hunter’s theory is the most common excepted theory, Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV) virus was transferred to human as a result of chimpanzees being killed and eaten.

It also said that their blood was getting into the hunters cuts or wounds.

SIV virus adapted itself within the human body an became HIV (canadian, 2014)

Out lining the relationship between CD4 count and HIV

• Cd4 count is a protein that is sometimes express on the surface of a class of immune system (T-cells).
• T-cell is the one who recognized when the cells have virus.
• If the cells are infected the CD4 will be positive, then the T- cell will start looking around to see if there is any pathogens.
• If there is any of pathogen the antibody response will tell cell called macrophages to destroy it (NHLBI, 2014).
• At this stage we can say that the HIV needs to bind of CD4 and one of its receptors to gain entry into white blood cells.
• Then over a certain period
• HIV infection will decline the number of CD4 cells because of decreasing of the CD4 count manuscript, 2014 NIH Public accessed, and 2014).

Stigma and discrimination

• Stigma refers to the prejudice and discrimination directed at people living with HIV and AIDS.
• It can be an important barrier to EMS personnel if we can implement it by advising personnel to get tested because most of people they afraid to see doctors to know about their results so that if they have disease they can start with treatment.
• Other thing is when personnel know that they have HIV/ AIDS they have a fear to talk about it or taking easy available precautions.
• So the more they have fear the stigma is processing on immune system, which lead to a seriously damage AIDS or aids epidemic continues to spread around.
• The epidemic of fear, stigmatization and discrimination has undermined the ability of personnel to protect them and provide support to the others who affected due to fear.
• If the affected personnel can have the supports from their love one’s, they can be able to stay positive all the times and take their treatment regularly.
• Ethical implications on HIV/AIDS are that health care workers should not disclose status of people/patient who tested positive and confidentiality should be maintained.

HIV virus

HIV envelop

• HIV viral protein that serves to form envelops where the glycoprotein referred to as envelops proteins because they make up of outer coat of human (mayoclinic, 2014).

HIV Capsid

• Is protein shell that protects the virus’s genetic material (mayoclinic, 2014).

HIV Enzyme

• It have three enzyme required for HIV replication and reverse which is transcriptase, integrase, protease.
• Before this enzymes become functional they it need to be cut from the longer polypeptide chain.
• Viral protease cuts the long chain into its individual enzyme components which then facilitate the production of new viruses (mayo clinic, 2014).

HIV RNA

• Genetic material of HIV composed of ribonucleic acid
• It can detect by nucleic acid test (NAT)
• NAT is not used for HIV infection, but it is used for measuring HIV concentration (viral load) level in a positive person (mayoclinic,discovery:2014)

HIV Glycoprotein

• This originally buried within the viral envelope, but when Gp120 binds to CD4 count receptors,Gp120 changes its confirmation causing Gp41 to become expose where it can assist infusion with the lost cell (mayoclic,2014)

Mayoclinic:2014

Education

• According to mayo clinic, “HIV/AIDS is the condition whereby the immune system of the body becomes weak in a state where it cannot defend itself against organisms that cause disease”.
• Although there are many education programmes in South Africa we cannot afford not to take action because there are already about 950 AIDS related death in South Africa every day.
• The silence and stigma surroundings HIV & AIDS must be broken and replaced by openance, good communication and compassion.
• Educating everyone especial in emergency care to understand how HIV & AIDS is spread and what we can do to protect ourselves.
• Encourage personnel to change sexual behavior and to practice safe sex at all times.
• Making condoms freely and easily available.
• Educating personnel on how to use them (Male & Female) ( discovery, mayoclinic,2014).

Wellness programme

• Personnel should assists with information regarding HIV/AIDS
• Personnel are offered pre test counseling before test to prepare them emotionally and psychologically for test.
• All tests should be done by the professionals.
• After the test, personnel’s receive post test counseling to assists him or her to deal with the positive result (mayoclinic,2014
• Provide HIV testing through the occupation Health clinic or we can refer to the external providers such as new start.
• Treatment for STI infections, like TB and HIV and AIDS (ARV’S).
• Continuous counseling and support to personnel (canadian, 2014)
• Emergency care workers are advice to always adhere to safety measures personal protective equipment (PPE).
• When working with fluid, blood and also with sharps like needles, scissors, blades, etc; you must work carefully to prevent needle pricks during working operation (canadian, 2014).

SUPPORT & SERVICE

• In situation where by a personnel is living with a HIV virus, issues to be considered like getting
• Psychological Support
• Moral support from management and from fellow or core workers (Discovery, 2014).
• Encourage personnel to take medication properly to live normal life as possible.
• The most pressing concern for scientist today should not be how the AIDS epidemic originated, but how those it affects can be treated (avert, 2014).
• Further spread of HIV can be prevented by education ,counseling and testing(Canadian, 2014) (Canadian, 2014)

CONSELLING & TESTING

• Personnel should be encouraged to know their HIV status by testing using trinity biotech and making sure that there is proper counseling that goes with testing (pre-post test)
• If the results is negative the trinity will have 1 line shows, if positive 2 lines will shows (discovery,2014

Conclusion

• It is likely that we will never know who the first person was infected with HIV, or exactly how it spread from that initial person.
• HIV education, counseling and testing is imperative in reducing new infections and deaths by means of safety measures and anti retroviral.
• Educating personnel, who is already living with this pandemic, encourage them to talk freely and have influence on their work by advising people where necessary.
• HIV and AIDS is a regarded as a behavioral problem.
• Let us not die from ignorance and denial,
• Let us do something or stand up (J.Mol,Biol,2011)

References

1. Aver, 2014 [online] available @ www.avert.org/hiv/aids-stigma and discrimination.htm accessed @ 15/10/2014
2. Copy right @1997 Canadian centre for occupation health & health & safety, support and service [online] available @ www.canadian.com accessed @ 05/102014 manuscript, 2014 NIH Public accessed, 2014).
3. Discovery, (2014) support service [online] available @ http://www.wisc.edu/media.com accessed @ 02/10/2014 and 03/10/2014.
4. J.Mol, Biol, (2011) how HIV & AIDS transmitted [online]available @www.nebi.nih,gov/pubmed.com accessed @20/10/2014
5. Manuscript, 2014 HIV and AIDS [online] available on http://ncib,nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles.accessed @ 06/10/2014.
6. Mayo clinic 2014 HIV and AIDS 0nline.available at http;//www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-condition/HIV/AIDS accessed@ 02/10/2014
7. NHLBI (2014), [online] available @ www.nhlbi.gov/health/health-topics/WELNESS.accessed @ 15/10/2014