AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. AIDS is caused
by the HIV virus, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. There is a multitude of ways that people can contract the virus. The most popular methods are through sharing syringes, having sexual intercourse with a HIV positive person, and through blood transfusion with infected blood. Once someone is infected by HIV, the human body produces antibodies to fight the virus. A blood screening test can reveal if someone is HIV positive or not by checking for the presence of antibodies.
Being HIV positive is not the same as having AIDS, the disease does not usually make the person sick immediately, it usually remains suppressed for many years. Once the disease breaks out, it damages the immune system making a person very vulnerable to normally harmless viruses, parasites and bacteria, if any of those attacks the immune system it can make you very sick and could even prove fatal. After your immune system has been heavily damaged the HIV disease has become AIDS. There is no cure for AIDS. There are drugs available that can slow down the damage done to the immune system through the HIV virus, but there is no way to get all of the HIV virus out of the body.
HIV and AIDS really came into public focus during the mid 80s, where the number of cases increased rapidly. Initially most of the people infected were men, but as the epidemic spread, more women and infants have caught the disease. This raised a lot of questions into how the disease was spread. What was originally thought of as an exclusively gay disease (and was termed GRID) was found to be transmitted through bodily fluids. Most of the available "cocktails" of anti-retroviral drugs to control the symptoms still were extremely expensive for those in developing countries. The newer, stronger anti-HIV drugs helped reduce the rates of most of the opportunistic infections, however, some are still very difficult to treat.
Receiving an HIV diagnosis creates strong emotional reactions. Initial feelings of shock can turn to fear, guilt, anger, sadness, despair and hopelessness.
The UN runs an initiative known as UNAIDS. Their mission is to support the response to AIDS, and advocate methods to prevent HIV. They have branches that work within the community to offer support to those with HIV. They also (along with the World Health Organisation) launched the 3 by 5 initiative. The 3 by 5 initiative was a target they set to provide three million people living with HIV or AIDS in LEDCs with antiretroviral treatment by the end of 2005. This initiative had many jobs to do. To raise the money needed for the treatments (as not all the money could be grants), they advocated funding together with corporate partners, raising money for the drugs, training for staff (with a goal to train 100,000 professional health staff) and strengthening of health services in badly affected countries. They worked directly with the governments to strengthen health systems to respond to the crisis. They also worked to create global communication systems to share progress and experience. Unfortunately, the treatment did not reach the 3,000,000 people planned. However, it did reach a large proportion of this target, and due to this the decision was taken to continue the project, due to its success. This outfit may be vital to curing the problem of how widespread the problem is, because they are sent to remote locations in LEDCs as well as crowded cities.
People suffering from HIV and AIDS are often stigmatised and shunned by society. In many societies HIV is directly associated with minority groups or behaviours, for example homosexuality and drug users. In some societies, HIV directly associated with perversion, and in particularly religious area, people believe that those infected deserve to be punished. Also, in many societies HIV is seen as the result of personal irresponsibility, often the result of no condoms, which one may assume to be a result of a drunken sexual encounter. In other societies, most notably in MEDCs, HIV and AIDS are believed to bring shame upon the family or community. This is particularly harmful because HIV is often passed down from mother to child.
More than 80% of people with Aids come from Africa. The Who says the disease is now the leading cause of death, and is the cause of a fifth of all deaths in the continent. Aids rates vary according to country with some having relatively low levels of infection, while others, such as Zimbabwe and Uganda have suffered greatly. In Uganda, people have formed TASO (The AIDS Support Organisation) to offer help and support to those suffering from AIDS. The Ugandan government have supported this cause, and have funded advertising in the country. The slogan TASO want people to remember is ABC. Each letter stands for a phrase designed to advise people A stands for Abstain. This relates to Abstain from sex if possible. If not, then Be faithful. If you cannot do this, then always use a Condom.
In Thailand, there are over 800,000 people suffering from HIV. This has prompted the Thai government to take action. They decided that the most effective way to combat this would be through the media. Now, on all major television and radio channels there is 30 seconds of AIDS education every hour. By doing this, the government hope to educate those most likely to view the media, young adults, who are also the most susceptible to AIDS.
Due to the scale of the AIDS problem, there is a lot of NGO (non-government organisation) work going on to help. One example of this is the Stigma self help group set up in 1989 in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Despite a tenuous relationship with Slovenian authorities and the healthcare service, the group established a drop-in centre for drug users. It was run by volunteers who offered advice and counselling. They work to promote safer sex and drug use. A similar system has been proposed a few times in the UK, where old needles are exchanged for sterile needles. However, this idea has been criticised for promoting the use of drug.
There is also a yearly World AIDS Day on December 1st. This day is used to raise awareness of the disease, to help fight the stigma. The day has a theme every year, and many events are held world-wide to raise money for AIDS charities. The idea of a World AIDS Day originated at the 1988 World Summit of Ministers of Health. Many people choose this day to celebrate the life of someone they have lost to AIDS.
