Introduction
There were more than 1 100 000 adults with the diagnosis of HIV/AIDS at the end of 2015. The virus has been spreading among homosexuals within the past four decades. The following paper is intended to develop a group policy regarding the issue of HIV/AIDS transmission.
Problems Involved in the HIV/AIDS Issue Area
Unfortunately, the human immunodeficiency virus has been spreading among American citizens rapidly within the last forty years (Reif et al., 2013). This infection is essential to address and discuss because it has to be treated immediately to prevent such unfortunate outcomes as lethality and possible damages to people’s immune systems. The primary issues related to HIV transmission are the following:
- A high risk of infection.
- Limited access to treatment.
- The virus’s rapid growth and transmission.
- A tremendous number of people born with the virus.
- Lack of awareness of infection.
Magnitudes of the Problems
It would be proper to mention that homosexuals and people who maintain unsafe sexuality remain at the highest risk of being infected with HIV/AIDS (Caldwell & Mathews, 2016). Fortunately, the number of annually infected people in the USA decreases (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2017). Hence, 18 160 patients were diagnosed with AIDS in 2016. Nowadays, there are approximately 1 230 000 individuals living with the discussed virus (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2017). As the government provides American citizens with free medicaments intended to lower the risk of lethality, the virus’s impact on people’s lives is not as adverse as several decades ago. Nowadays, infected patients might live for more than 60 years.
Solutions to the Problem
The list below is a plan that is intended to enumerate and consider possible solutions to the problem of HIV/AIDS rapid transmission:
- Offer people to undergo an HIV/AIDS test every six months (the virus’s incubation period) (Rayment et al., 2013).
- Provide immediate treatment to the patients with positive HIV test results. This might reduce the risk of the virus’s transmission in one’s blood.
- Provide psychological help to individuals who might be at risk of being infected.
Policy Objectives
A sound policy objective to prevent the spreading of HIV/AIDS among adults implies the provision of free condoms to homosexuals. Also, it would be proper to popularize official statistics of infected patients among children for them to assess the problem wisely. The political viability of these suggestions requires financial support. However, the means that the country might spend on these measures are not as expensive as medicaments provided to infected people. Potential unintended consequences of the objectives mentioned above include the society’s neglect of contraception means.
Questions for Reflection
The most difficult part of this exercise was to think of various solutions as many scholars have already done everything possible to prevent the discussed issues. The most helpful criteria in considering my policy objectives were the possible outcomes that patients might meet due to the problem of HIV/AIDS transmission. The unintended consequences mentioned in this paper influenced my thinking by demonstrating the possible results of the policy implementation.
Conclusion
HIV/AIDS is one of the most common viruses in the USA. Unfortunately, many people are not aware of its presence in their blood and might infect their relatives, friends, and colleagues without knowing it. To prevent such situations, it would be proper to test people every six months and provide immediate treatment in case of positive results.
References
Caldwell, K., & Mathews, A. (2016). The role of relationship type, risk perception, and condom use in middle socioeconomic status black women’s HIV-prevention strategies. Journal of Black Sexuality and Relationships, 2(2), 91-120. Web.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017). HIV in the United States: At a glance. Web.
Rayment, M., Rae, C., Ghooloo, F., Doku, E., Hardie, J., Finlay, S.,… Sullivan, A. (2013). Routine HIV testing in the emergency department: Tough lessons in sustainability. HIV Medicine, 14(1), 6-9. Web.
Reif, S. S., Whetten, K., Wilson, E. R., Mcallaster, C., Pence, B. W., Legrand, S., & Gong, W. (2013). HIV/AIDS in the Southern USA: A disproportionate epidemic. AIDS Care, 26(3), 351-359. Web.