The Modern Plague: Protecting Yourself, Your Community Against HIV
To lessen the devastating impact HIV has on people's lives, healthcare professionals advise that you maintain a monogamous relationship with an HIV negative person, abstain from sexual intercourse, or use a condom 100% of the time. Do not use needle...
Web of Addiction: Designing a More Effective Approach to Drug Rehabilitation
Administrators of programs talk about the benefits of treating drug addiction as a health problem rather than a legal problem. A large majority of people in prison are there because of a drug-related offenses. Treatment programs have long waiting li...
Final Chapter: Children with Terminal Illnesses
Studies reveal that children who are given information about their terminal condition fare better than those who are shielded from such information. Sandra McDonald, head of Outreach, Inc., talks about a ten-year-old boy who was diagnosed with A.I.D...
Final Chapter: End Stages
Toward the end of life, the pace changes. Hilary, a terminally ill A.I.D.S. patient, notes that she prefers to limit her social interactions at this stage in the dying process. She has said her good-byes, and feels a physical calmness as her body sl...
Web of Addiction: Breaking the Hold of Drug Dependence
When people are addicted to drugs like alcohol or heroin their brain is saying, "Danger, don't stop this drug!" It takes a lot of help to kick the habit because of the pain of withdrawal. Some programs use substitute drugs, such as methadone for her...
Web of Addiction: Victims of Drug Addiction, The
The use of illicit drugs is increasing in many parts of the world along with the social and health problems related to it. Drug use is as familiar to suburbia and the corridors of big business as it is on the streets. Addictive behaviors tend to be ...
Web of Addiction: Role of the Environment in Addiction, The
Drug addiction is not like other genetically-affected illnesses that appear regardless of a person's behavior. Drug addiction is uniquely dependent on how the person interacts with their environment. A person exposed to a drug will first develop a h...
The Modern Plague: Fear Among Healthcare Providers; Public Complacency
At the beginning of the epidemic, fear was the bottom line, particularly among healthcare providers. Some healthcare providers refused to take care of these patients. Initially the public was complacent, lulled by the fact that many people considere...
Web of Addiction: Behavior Therapy and the Withdrawal from Drugs
Medications used in addiction treatment are almost always used in conjunction with psychosocial therapy that teaches people what triggers their addiction. People discover that they do have a choice, and that by learning different routines and how to...
The Modern Plague: Victims of HIV: A Changing Picture
The death rate due to AIDS continues to decline as a result of more sophisticated testing and treatment, but the incidence of HIV infection continues is increasing among women, minorities, heterosexuals, and adolescents. Sandra McDonald shares her e...