03.08.2013 Views

Public Health Law Map - Beta 5 - Medical and Public Health Law Site

Public Health Law Map - Beta 5 - Medical and Public Health Law Site

Public Health Law Map - Beta 5 - Medical and Public Health Law Site

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

patients about high-risk behavior <strong>and</strong> counsel them in the risks of such behavior:<br />

Counseling <strong>and</strong> testing are recommended in any medical setting in which<br />

women at risk are encountered, including private practices <strong>and</strong> clinics offering<br />

services for gynecologic <strong>and</strong> prenatal care, family planning, <strong>and</strong> diagnosis <strong>and</strong><br />

treatment of sexually transmitted diseases. Voluntary <strong>and</strong> confidential HIV<br />

antibody testing, with appropriate counseling <strong>and</strong> consent, should be offered to<br />

all women <strong>and</strong> encouraged for those who are at risk for acquiring the disease.<br />

The risk factors for acquiring HIV infection apply to a woman or to her sexual<br />

partner <strong>and</strong> include the following:<br />

illicit drug abuse (especially intravenous drug use)<br />

current or previous multiple sexual partners or prostitution<br />

transfusion of blood or blood products before adequate screening began in the<br />

United States (between 1978–1985)<br />

bisexual activity<br />

origin in countries where the incidence of HIV is high<br />

symptoms of HIV-related illnesses<br />

history of or current sexually transmitted diseases<br />

In addition, testing is recommended in the presence of tuberculosis or any<br />

illness for which a positive test result might affect the recommended diagnostic<br />

evaluation, treatment, or follow up. [ACOG Technical Bulletin 169. Human<br />

Immune Deficiency Virus Infections. June 1992.]<br />

This sexual history must be documented as carefully as any other part of the medical<br />

history. The medical care practitioner should ask every patient the same basic<br />

questions. Even if a woman is self-identified as homosexual, she should be counseled<br />

to ensure that she underst<strong>and</strong>s the options for contraception <strong>and</strong> reproductive health.<br />

These matters may not be of immediate concern to her, yet many male <strong>and</strong> female<br />

homosexuals do enter into heterosexual relationships to conceive children or as a<br />

variant on their usual sexual activity. It is also important to ask self-identifed<br />

heterosexuals about homosexual activity. This is especially important for prisoners<br />

who may engage in homosexual activities in prison but self- identify as heterosexuals<br />

<strong>and</strong> have only heterosexual relationships outside prison.<br />

The medical care practitioner’s duty to ask about a patient’s sexual activity must be<br />

balanced against the patient’s right of privacy. If a patient denies sexual activity <strong>and</strong><br />

there is no objective evidence to the contrary, the medical care practitioner should treat<br />

this information like any other patient- reported information. As with other changeable<br />

behavior, however, the medical care practitioner has a duty to re-explore the area on<br />

future visits. Given the general unreliability of self-reported information about<br />

behavior that the patient may wish to conceal, the medical care practitioner should<br />

continue to consider pregnancy <strong>and</strong> venereal diseases when indicated by the patient’s<br />

518

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!