Health Policy on Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome - Term Paper Example

Name : xxxxxxxxxxx Institution : xxxxxxxxxxx Course : xxxxxxxxxxx Title : Health Policy on AIDS Tutor : xxxxxxxxxxx @ 2009 Health Policy on AIDS Health policy is a declaration of a conclusion on a goal in health care and an arrangement for attaining the goal (Weissert 2006). For instance, to prevent and control an epidemic, a course for vaccinating a population is developed and applied. It is also defined as a field of learning and practice whereby there is determination of priorities and principles fundamental health resource allocation (Hancock 1999). Health Policy is supposed to be a vehicle for the investigation and discussion of health policy matters and is planed solely at enhancing communication among health policy researchers, decision-makers, legislators, and professionals participating in revolutionizing, implementing, and examining health policy (Weissert 2006). Health policy covers an unclear position in relation to the welfare states sociology (Hancock 1999). According to many theorists assumption, provision of health care fits well within a system of wider structures and ideas that decides the overarching form of a nationally attached welfare state, but experimental studies demonstrate that this is not true. Research on Health policy exposes the differences among welfare states that are mostly lumped in one category (Weissert 2006). AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is caused by HIV virus. HIV stands for the Human Immunodeficiency virus (Clarke 2000).To understand the disease well, we split it into parts. Acquired shows that the disease infects people, Immune Deficiency is a weakness in the system of the body that prevents and fights diseases. Lastly, Syndrome stands for a number of health predicaments that causes a disease. An individual is diagnosed with the disease when their resistant systems are weak to resist and fight off infections (Clarke 2000). The first case of AIDS was recognized about 25 years ago and since then millions of people world wide have been infected with HIV virus claiming millions of lives (Goldberg 2002). Internationally, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS has been estimated to be 33 million, whereby more than a million are from the United States (Goldberg 2002). Though there have been a positive results in addressing the deadly disease on several fronts, lots of challenges are in prevention, care and treatment, infrastructure, research and capacity development, and financing. The Kaiser Family Foundation is a free online supply of sovereign and present information on the HIV/AIDS epidemic for policymakers, advocates, the media, community members, and people and families affected by the epidemic. The foundation has information on the work spans on all areas of HIV/AIDS including the policy research and analysis (Goldberg 2002). Health policy matters connected with AIDS are difficult and controversial. This includes health care, education, research priorities, testing and confidentiality (Ostrow 2001). However, modelling provides information pertinent to their solution. Estimations of the numbers of future symptomatic individuals and of the severity mix are essential for developing the ability to provide and finance health care services. Models might also suggest other needed data and research directions. A significant policy task of models is to allow evaluation of possible involvement steps and mainly to project harmful consequences. The vital contribution of models will help in improving the understanding of the dynamics of AIDS epidemic (Ostrow 2001). Differences among the AIDS policy implementation in nations bring out the need to consider the form of health system institutions as essential determinants of policy together with the cultural and political factors that are mostly taken into account. In June 2001, United States together with other 189 national governments at the UNGASS came up with the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS. The document entrusts governments to develop responses to their local AIDS epidemics and lay down goals for AIDS-related policy, financing, and programming (Goldberg 2002). The Declaration also orders the government to carry out periodic reviews so as to assess progress on achieving their UNGASS commitments. In identifying the important role played by the civil society in the response to HIV/AIDS, the Declaration expects the government to involve civil society, especially people infected with HIV/AIDS, in the review process (Goldberg 2002). Also, there is an immediate need for the employers of the HIV-positive staff to come up with policies that will support their employees and make sure that they are not casualty of stigma. Unfortunately, this is rarely unaddressed (Banta 2002). Actually, most employees are recruiting two employees for the same job as they anticipate that the HIV positive staff will keep on taking sick leave or may die anytime. This resource used in training the extra employee can be saved if there is a health policy on AIDS/HIV on the work place. This is because HIV positive employees when taken care of they do not get sick hence no leave sick and early deaths (Banta 2002). Ten percent of the world’s population is in Sub-Saharan Africa and yet sixty percent of the population is HIV positive. Nine out of ten who are infected are adults who have just starting to work. There are ten principles considered when addressing health policy on AIDS in the workplace. These principles address issues like discriminating HIV-positive workers, adjusting the workplace in order to fulfil the health needs of these employees, and make sure that those who are infected their employment is not terminated (Pequegnat 2000). The principles stress that; policy should also include the social partners. This is through informing and educating them on how to handle their HIV positive employees by changing their attitudes and behaviour towards them. All employees should be compelled to change their behaviour and attitude positively towards the HIV positive employees (Banta 2002). The intention of health insurance is to aid people meet most medical expenses (Stanberry 1998). Health insurers sometimes make it very hard for HIV positive people to get health insurance or to have their insurance to cover up the catastrophic costs of healing for HIV and AIDS (Vculek 2003). However, increasing attention on the desire to make health coverage general has helped come up with a remedy to these problems faced by HIV positive people (Vculek 2003). A Health care insurance coverage is a serious factor that affects access to essential health care for HIV/AIDS patients (Vculek 2003). About 60-percent of the American occupants have private health care insurance programs coverage. Mostly, these programs are funded fully or partly by employers. The remaining percentage is financed by the covered people and families (Pequegnat 2000).For the rest 40 percent of the Americans, there are various ways of dealing with the delivery of health care services as follows; about 25 percent of the Americans, their health care services are financed by the central government, mainly through the Medicare and Medicaid programs, five-percent of the population are fund themselves and are assisted by their families, as they prefer not to contract for insurance because they are able to pay for their medical care,10 percent of the population postpone health care services until they are seriously ill and visit health care as emergency patients(Vculek 2003). The health policy on AIDS establishes international goals and the main strategies for dealing with the effects of HIV on vulnerable and orphan children and they are based on directing principles of human rights (Kronenfeld 2002). The policy summarizes precedence actions to offer education for orphans and susceptible children, and also ensures admission, expanding the function of schools to provide care and support, running the supply and excellence of education, and the protection of these children. The level and fundamentals of the challenge are also outlined together with directing principles for action (Brown 2001). This policy provides more information and summarizes suggested actions for protecting these children from increased susceptibility, and reduces high risks of abuse they face, neglect and exploitation. Though this policy discusses the protection issues these children world wide, it actions are reflected to the findings of the research carried in Africa on the vulnerability of orphans (Brown 2001). The provision and adoption of the feminine condom, which guards against both sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy, is at very low state to have an effect on the HIV epidemic (Brown 2001). The health policies on AIDS answers major questions on female condom and gives evidence on its efficiency and impact, discovers challenges to wider use and proposes steps to reinforce condom programming globally (Kronenfeld 2002). . Condoms play a significant role in stopping the increase of HIV (Brown 2001).This policy gives specified and sensible advice on increasing the requirement for and the supply of condoms (Brown 2001). It is mainly for the workers in the health care, peer counselors, and other outreach workers counseling clients on HIV/STI prevention and how to use condom; the bartenders, sales clerks, taxi drivers, and everybody who sell condoms; and store managers, the clinic staff, and shop owners who run condom outlets. An improvement on condom programming helps close the present gap in condom use and supply, and decreases the spread of HIV (Sorensen 2001). The main goal of condom programming is to make sure that active sex persons who are at high risk of being infected with HIV/Sexually Transmitted Infections are encouraged to use condoms, easily access quality condoms, and uses them continuously and correctly. This policy gives managers specific and practical advice on improving the effectiveness of surviving condom programs or creating a new condom program. It also tackles the provision and the demand for condoms and the socio-cultural, political, and economic environment where the supply and demand exist (Sorensen 2001). An educational program is very important to addressing HIV infection (Moore 1996). Increase in education and awareness not only aid prevent more spread of the HIV virus, but also minimizes the possibility for different forms of prejudice against people infected with HIV by giving truthful information to dismiss unnecessary fears (Moore 1996). The policy insists on offering broad educational programs on HIV and AIDS infection that meet the needs of both infected and not infected persons (Sorensen 2001). Such programs comprise information on the character of the disease and spread factors, the right use of condoms, testing and treatment alternatives, and lawful rights and errands. Successful educational programs will need considerable outreach frequently. Efficient informational materials are available at the Health Facilities, institutions and organizations (Moore 1996). Health Services offer medical care, therapy, referrals, assessment on risk, education practicing safer sex, and HIV before testing and after testing counseling to infected and non-infected patients upon request (Banta 2002). Screening program to determine the HIV status should be put on place and policies that ensures the confidentiality of medical results be practiced. Health Services should not make public medical information of any type to any individual, agency, group, parent, insurer family member, institution or employee without the previous, exact, printed informed consent of the person concerned except if it’s needed by law or court order (Banta 2002). Bibliography Banta W. F., 2002, AIDS in the workplace: legal questions and practical answers University of Michigan, Michigan. Brown L. D., 2001, Health policy and the disadvantaged, Duke University Press, UK. Clarke K. L., 2000, The AIDS Reader, Branden Books, London. Goldberg B., 2002, Alternative medicine: the definitive guide, Celestial Arts, New Jersey. Hancock L., 1999, Health policy in the market state, Allen & Unwin, Melbourne. Kronenfeld J., 2002, Health care policy: issues and trends, Greenwood Publishing Group, New York. Moore M., 1996, AIDS education: reaching diverse populations, Greenwood Publishing Group, New York Ostrow D. G., 2001, Behavioral aspects of AIDS, Springer, New York. Pequegnat W., 2000, Working with families in the era of HIV/AIDS, SAGE, New York. Sorensen J. L., 2001, Preventing AIDS in drug users and their sexual partners, Guilford Press, New Jersey. Stanberry L. R., 1998, Understanding herpes: Understanding health and sickness series, Univ. Press of Mississippi, Mississippi. Vculek J., 2003, AIDS--one: legal, social & ethical issues facing the insurance industry, The University of California, New York. Weissert G. W., 2006, Governing health: the politics of health policy, JHU Press, New York. Read More