Some HIV-positive women in India who seek treatment at local government hospitals say they’ve suffered verbal abuse from hospital personnel; others claim they have been forced to have abortions if they are pregnant (topnews.in, 11/19).
“At some of these centers, women are being made to undergo forced abortions even in advanced stages of pregnancy when the national guidelines issued by National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) clearly state that bearing a child should be entirely the mother’s choice,” said one woman from the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
The women say that medical staff and nurses need better HIV/AIDS training to provide appropriate care those who are infected. Malini Bhattacharya, a member of the National Commission for Women (NCW) said, “The government needs to look into these complaints seriously to provide succor to these women.”
There are about 60,000 new HIV infections in India each year.
Beth Benne, RN, is HIV negative, but
the virus has impacted her life. She currently supervises a biannual HIV/AIDS awareness week as
the director of the student health center at Pierce College, a
community commuter school in Woodland Hills, California.
Woman of the Month is supported by exclusive advertising from Gilead.
Overheard in the Women's Forum
"I recently met a guy who is negative. I did tell him about my status and he decided to kiss me anyway (we didn't go further than that). But a day later, he called and said that he actually had a mouth ulcer that time when we kissed and he was very worried. Asked if he can get the virus from me that way. For that moment, I felt so insulted and yet I felt so bad. It was my first time having a contact with a "negative" guy."
