Monday, January 17, 2011
HW#30
The aspect of dominant social practices I explored was technology in medicine and how it has changed over time. We have been reading articles in class showing the different ways doctors and hospital deal with death and dying and we also read articles about health care in the United States. I did the topic of Aids/HIV and technology and how even though their is no cure for Aids they can stop HIV from turning into Aids. "HIV infection can be prevented, and those living with HIV can take antiretroviral drugs to delay the onset of AIDS. However, in many countries across the world access to prevention and treatment services is limited"(http://www.avert.org/aids.htm) Rossi, Jay and I went to and Aids/HIV clinic and we asked the people getting treated questions about there life and questions about the health care they are receiving. We had to construct a list of questions before we asked the people because the workers of the clinic wanted broad questions. When I looked around the clinic I saw women in hospital clothing and I saw room where they were taking blood and where they gave people with Aids/HIV checkups. I learned that Aids/HIV really affected the lives of the people we were interviewing one person started taking drugs to avoid the pain but went off of them and decided to change his life he also said that with his health care he is about to die new drugs to help him get medicated. This shows that hospitals and clinics do have a light side and take care of people. Not like what they show in the movie Near Death. It matters because the people in the Aids/HIV clinics looks like they love their jobs and they love taking care of people who has this disease that kill a lot of people
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Technology in medicine has certainly changed the way we perceive diseases. Research provides medicine with the ability to identify, sustain and cure diseases. The AIDS/HIV epidemic has plagued many for the last few decades. While there is no cure there is always the hope that one will be discovered. In the interim, research and technology can provide AIDS/HIV patients with the ability to live a “normal” life. Your experience at the clinic may have shown you the bitter/sweet side of reality. While patients infected by this disease are sick they still may aspire to become healthy. It is important to remember that the feeling of overcoming the pain of dying of this disease (or any other) has to come from the individual who is being affected. If the person has no hope for the future, it can alter the outcome.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, healthcare has much to do with the way AIDS/HIV patients are treated. For example, Magic Johnson, a wealthy entrepreneur and professional basketball player has had the opportunity to live for over 20 years infected with HIV. His insurance and financial status has allowed him to receive the right medications and nutritional advice to keep him alive and well. Patients with low income do not have such a happy ending. Low-income individuals may not have insurances that can cover expensive medication, or able to afford healthy nutritional foods and participate in physical activities that can encourage a healthy lifestyle. The reality of coping with such a disease will differ for many based on soci-economic status, gender, race, ethnicity, occupation, religion and overall outlook on life.
Overall, you picked a great and complex topic for discussion.