This was supposed to posted on Blog #6 but with the lack of blog topics it completely slipped through my radar. Well it has been said that its always better late then never so here it is.
Blog #8 Confidentiality in Puerto Rico
After searching for an HIV confedentiality policy in P.R. I came a case where an indviduals confedinitality was broken. In the case of "Diaz, Reyes v. United States the court held that Puerto Rico law does not require the physician to inform the members of a patients family of the patient's AIDS diaganosis, even when one of the family members is the patient's wife," (AIDS and the Law 2004). Also, that under a established P.R. statue the medical care provider can not release any information unless consented by the paitent. This means that if someone tests positive or negitive for HIV/AIDS then it is kept bewteen that individual and the tester.
This is such a touchy subject becuase one hand you want to keep persons infected with HIV protected by confedintiality. On the other hand you have persons that will use that confedentiality to their advantage and decieve others, possibly infect them (Which is what happens more often than I can stomach). So this is where the politics of HIV come in to place. What policies should be adopted and at what cost?
http://books.google.com/books?id=0xVd7n95pHoC&pg=PA73&lpg=PA73&dq=puerto+rico+hiv+confidentiality&source=bl&ots=BT24eN7nT6&sig=SGPX0pT5ddjuYlKiUgDy9kS1TUI&hl=en&ei=KoffSrTjOY2b8AaM5Nxq&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CCkQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=puerto%20rico%20hiv%20confidentiality&f=false
DYK: Fl Health Education
I am starting to loose faith in our educational system in regards to HIV and STD's. Everywhere I look it seems that our nation is relying on the absitence message for prevention. This was implemented during the Reagan Administration and wasn't successful then and it continues to be unsuccessful. In our home state of Florida I found the statue concerning Health Education: Instruction on AIDS. The very first sentence irratated me, "Each district school board may provide instruction in acquired immune deficiency syndrome education as a specific area of health education..." I placed may in bold face letters because may defines this as not a requirement. Therefore schools could elect to not teach about AIDS at all. It continues to say if a school should teach about AIDS then the message should be abstience. I put the link below and its just a continuing disappointment but I will continue to search for a school that has a better message to send in regard of HIV education in school. I believe next week I will look into private schools (not one affiliated with religion however).
Florida State Statute 1003.428 2(a)(6) General requirements for high school graduation; revised. One credit in physical education to include integration of health.
http://www.fldoe.org/BII/CSHP/Education/HIV_STD/policies.asp
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Doctors here couldn't tell either, until the law was changed, which allowed them to inform a partner if the person who was infected refused to do so. You had to give them an opportunity to tell, and if they didn't then you could violate their confidence.
ReplyDeleteThere are many school districts that don't teach about pregnancy, HIV, STDs or contraceptives. In Orange county you can talk about them all but you can't demonstrate the use of a condom. In Seminole county you can't even mention condoms.
It will be up to your generation to make the changes in the school systems.
You will be surprised to learn that many of the private religious school do a better job of teaching about STDs and HIV than do public schools.