Vulnerable Population Summary and Proposed Program 1

Week Two Assignment

HCA 430: Special Populations

Vulnerable Population Summary and Proposed Program

Vulnerable Population Summary and Proposed Program 2

Vulnerable Groups In Our Society

Elaborate and discuss these statements in  detailed form.

There has been a growing prevalence of people that are affected and infected by

HIV/AIDS. The people that are infected within the communities have increased in numbers over

the past decades because of lifestyle changes and other different sequence of events and stages of

change in people’s lives. This has led to extreme concern by the government. The government

has tried to implement different projects that would lead to the curtailing of the spread of the

disease, but it has come to no effects on the pandemic of the disease. This stands to reason

because the number of more and more people are being diagnosed with HIV/AIDS all over the

United States every year. There needs to be an appropriate method that will address the specific

problems that are leading to the spread and outbreaks of HIV/AIDS. The method should focus on

the societal aspects of the contracting of the disease rather than as they find a cure and its success

is warranted more accolades than the actual spread of the disease. This proposal hopes to address

the many issues and concerns and devise and produce a solution that will work for everyone.

There are numerous factors that have an impact on HIV/AIDS. These factors have been

reported to have an influence on the spread of the HIV/AIDS disease. The factors that have had

the most influence are age, gender, cultural backgrounds and ethnicity. Age groups vary within a

country. Depending on the mode of the age group within the country it will determine the

prevalence of HIV/AIDS. In a country where there are many young people, there is higher

possibility of HIV/AIDS prevalence being higher.

Vulnerable Population Summary and Proposed Program 3

However, where the population constitutes more elderly, more mature people the prevalence

of HIV/AIDS is noted on a lower scale. This is attributed to the fact that younger people tend to

be more sexually active with different partners as well as one single partner than the older

generation (Chaitow, 2000). This is how age impacts on the pandemic of HIV/AIDS in the

society. The culture/ethnicity of a community determines the prevalence of HIV/AIDS. How

many people view the disease will determine whether or not they will be interactive in

implementing methods that will curtail the spread of the disease. It is important to note that HIV

is not only spread through sexual contact. Needle sharing among intravenous drug users

continues to spread HIV/AIDS and other diseases throughout the vulnerable populations

(Burkholder & Nash, 2013).

The intersection of social, political and economic factors affects the prevalence of

HIV/AIDS. When diagnosed with this disease, there is always a change in the person’s behavior.

They remove themselves from society and retreat to solitude. They do not want to interact

with people as much as they initially did before the diagnosis of the disease. Also, when the

community finds out that that person is infected with the disease they tend to separate themselves

from the individual. Politically this issue is normally ignored. Politicians do not touch on the root

of the problem (United Nations, 2004). They will visit the affected areas and help the infected

and affected and dying but they will fail to enable these people to have the skills that they need

to continue the dependence that they need to care for themselves. The economic systems are

affected by the increase in the pandemic of HIV/AIDS. This is because when a person falls ill to

the disease they are not as active as they would if they were well. Therefore, HIV/AIDS

negatively affects the economic values of a country.

Vulnerable Population Summary and Proposed Program 4

It is very evident that society plays a vital role in how people diagnosed with HIV/AIDS are

treated. The mentality that they have determines how HIV/AIDS patients view the disease that

they have acquired and are diagnosed with. The disease is one of the most feared diseases

because as of now there is no cure for it. However, it is clear there are many misconceptions

about the disease that need to be addressed so that patients can be confident to seek the proper

care needed for them. Therefore, the public should be enlightened more about the disease and

truly how the disease is spread in the first place before anything else is discussed.

HIV/AIDS patients need proper healthcare so that they live thriving longer lives. After a

patient has been diagnosed it is important that they are first and foremost counseled. This

counseling effect will help them to come to terms with the disease and the condition for which

they will be in. Counseling them provides them with information on how their diet can really

affect how long they will thrive and live their lives. The government provides free anti- retroviral

drugs for patients (Chaitow, 2000). Yet very few people know about this fact. Patients, should be

made aware of this fact and be advised of the nearest healthcare clinic or hospital that offers

them these services. Also, there should be social workers and support groups that will help them

and counsel them about the ways that they can make their lives better and this should be

continual for the duration of their lives.

The propsed system is important to patients regardless of what kind of disease that they may

be suffering from. Research has shown that a patient who has a healthy support group, whether

they be family and friends or well-trained counselors live healthier lives and thrive more than

those patients whom have no one.

Vulnerable Populations Summary and Proposed Program

The Anti-retroviral drugs are organized in five classes and are very expensive. These classes

are based on the stage of the HIV/AIDS life cycle they inhibit. Antiretroviral therapy is typically

prescribed using three different drug molecules, a strategy that was popularly known as HAART

(highly active antiretroviral therapy). It was introduced in 1996. It has evolved in the way that it

offers fewer side affects and the drug has greater treatment efficacy than ever

before(VeryWellhealth, 2018). Although some people might be able to afford them, it will

eventually wear into their income. Therefore, the free drugs will assure the patient that they will

always have medicine. The support groups at the healthcare system will help the patients

encourage each other as they are able to see others who are affected by the disease who are living

healthy lives (Chaitow, 2000). They will also be overly inspired to seek healthier lifestyles and

lives by the treatments of the drugs, the results of the other patients and their positive results in

the same manner of their ways of having the proper support. The counseling services may

operate in different ways. For example, a group of HIV/AIDS patients can be meeting once a

week to share their concerns and to encourage each other. Each session would include how their

week has been, how they have coped with the highs and the lows of daily living with the disease.

Then after their discussions are finished they can have their antiretroviral medicines refilled.

This proposal will ensure a point of success that will go far in ensuring that our society

recognizes that HIV/AIDS can be a manageable disease. This means that if the treatments are

successful these recipients can be viable contributors to society.

References

Chaitow, L. (2000). HIV & AIDS. Shaftesbury, Dorset; Element.

United Nations. (2004). The impact of AIDS. New York: United Nations.

Burkholder, D. M., & Nash, N.B. (2013). Special Populations in health care [Electronic

version]. Retrieved from https://content.asford.edu/

James Myhre and Dennis Sifris, MD, a board certified physicians, Very Well health (Feb. 28,

2018 https://www.verywellhealth.com/list of approved-hiv-antiretroviral-drugs-49309?utm