I found This debate quite interesting. [quote:9023d116a3="BBC NEWS"] Do you think enough is being done to provide affordable healthcare to Aids patients? What are your experiences of getting medication and treatment for the disease? Has the public become complacent or accepting about the disease? What are you doing for World Aids Day?[/quote:9023d116a3] I've been doing quite a bit towards AIDs day (which is today) including a huge benifit dinner which raise anormous amount of money and gets lots of teachers and parents drunk and dancing and throwing money towards the cause. It's an amazing evening and everyone is contributing great amounts towards AIDs. My concern is that people are becoming bored or uninterested with the issue. It's not so relevant to themselves as it was 20 years ago. We were given this presentation yesterday which highlighted the ability to deal with the virus and showed how little of an issue it is in developed countries as the drugs needed were available and the virus counld be controlled. Now because it is not so much of an issue for the more developed nations it has become nearly forgotten, yet it is still one of the 'big 8' diseases. It kills millions evey year (a frightening number of which are children - and the virus can be easily stopped in transmitting to them if the drugs are available) It's a similar situation to Malaria, which has a known cure but the drugs are not available enough to stop a virus which has the ability to be prevented. Naturally countries have their own issues with AIDs, particularly the prejudices which still exist, and these can hinder the acceptance and prevetion of the disease. Singapoe itself is frightening, the country is developed but still the drugs needed for patients cost $1,000 a month! No one can afford that - so even in a country which is in the possition to offer the treatment AIDs itself is still frowned upon and the people who have it, alienated. Anyway, I just wanted to make the issue known and also wondered if it is something you are concerned with or not really aware of at all...
I have a few related concerns, firstly I agree wholeheartedly with you re the cost of medication, it's a growing problem and when the Live 8 thing was going off I was surprised they didn't make more of an issue with it, shaming drug companies into providing affordable drugs would more for developing countries all over the world than the cancellation of debt. Another thing but closer to home is the issue of blood donation. I give blood regularly, and each time you do that you have to answer questions to assess your risk of picking up HIV (and other blood diseases) since your last donation. They bar you from donation if you are a man who has ever had homosexual sex or if you have ever had sex with a man who has had homosexual sex. Given that HIV is on the rise amongst hetrosexuals while in decline amongst homosexuals, I think this policy desperately needs reviewing. It perpetuates the myth that HIV and AIDS are 'gay' diseases that straight people don't need to worry about and denys a lot of people who'd like to donate the chance to.
I am prohibited from giving blood because my husband used IV drugs over a quarter of a century ago, its too bad because I am type O positve.
That is bad. I can't give blood because (apart from the fact that currently I'm underage) I lived in England for 8 years, and that prevents me from giving blood in Ireland. Not quite sure why, I think it's because of some disease. . but it's too early in the morning for me to be able to remember what one!
Mad Cow Disease, that's why I can't give blood either...anyone who has been in the UK for more than 3 months at a stretch or living anywhere in Europe five or more years can't give blood here. I just spent the last 12 or so hours setting up, participating in and cleaning up after the AIDs benifit dinner at my school. I am exhasted but glad to have done so much...the evening was a complete success and we raised LOADS of money. My only complaint is there wasn't much information added about AIDs itself...it was just assumed people knew... I'm off to bed now...
Not that it really matters, but the 'S' in AIDS is supposed to be in caps too. And humans don't get Mad Cow Disease, they get CJD or Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. Good work with the benefit fairyliquid.
Yes, well done. Giving blood is something I keep trying to psych myself up for. I gave blood once before, but I fainted. I've also become frightened of needles since a bad experience when in hospital. So I need to overcome my fears of fainting, bleeding and needles in order to give blood! I will do it though. I consider it a duty, and fear has no place there.
My sister can't give blood because she was took a quarter of college classes in England, she also tends to have low blood pressure. She is grateful she doesn't have to give blood anymore. I believe that Creutzfeld- Jajob disease is supposed to be caused by the same agent as Bovine Cerebral Encephalopathy. When nervous system tissue is ingested by an individual of the same species it can leave behind things called prions that are self replicating but not living, once formed they are not destroyed by heat or the immune system. They stay in the body and attack the central nervous system. They just destroy the brain. The disease has long been known to occur among cannibalistic cultures, but it wasn't really researched until the outbreak among Britain's cattle. BCE is still being found even though the feeding of cattle is being regulated, so I'm not totally sure the prion theory is the whole story. Back in the early 80's I was reading about this disease that they thought might be caused by wearing out the immune system, turns out it was a virus.
