Abstract

BRITO SOSA, Germán  and  IRAIZOZ BARRIOS, Ana María. Bioethical approach of HIV-patients and of secondary care physicians and nurses on the HIV/AIDS. Rev Cubana Med Gen Integr [online]. 2011, vol.27, n.2, pp. 217-231. ISSN 0864-2125.

Introduction: the bioethics is a concept very used in the medical and scientific practice and as a novel discipline of only 40 years it represents a challenge to face the fearsome pandemic of HIV/AIDS due to its transmission route and the diversity of related problems. Objective: to analyze the knowledges and bioethical assessment of physicians and nursing staff of the "Julio Trigo López" hospital and the patient carriers of HIV with ambulatory treatment on HIV/AIDS consequences. Methods: a prospective, longitudinal, descriptive and observational study was conducted. A original survey designed by authors was applied and validated in the "Santiago de las Vegas" sanatorium to measure the general knowledges on HIV/AIDS and the bioethics features related to problems caused by this affection. Survey was applied in 300 persons aged over 15, from them 100 are physicians from the "Julio Trigo López" hospital, 100 nurses of that institution and 100 patients carriers of HIV with ambulatory treatment in La Habana. Surveys were fill in between January and December, 2006 in an anonymous way and directed by the physician to the three groups. Results: the 87 % of the three groups propose the there is a great possibility to acquire the HIV/AIDS when a sexual transmission infection has been present. The 100 % of the I group and the 90 % of the II group know that a HIV carrier may to transmit the disease. The 67 % of physicians, the 44 % of nursing staff and the 100 % of patient carriers of HIV consider that the population must not to know who the HIV/AIDS patients affected are. Conclusions: there is a good knowledge of HIV-AIDS by the person polled, although this is not the case in low percentage of nursing staff. There is discrimination with HIV carriers and of AIDS according the three polled groups. The principles of bioethics are not appropriately fulfilled in mainly the situations created by HIV/AIDS.

Keywords : Bioethics; HIV/AIDS; discrimination.