When HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), the virus which causes AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), was first discovered in the early 1980s, it was a death sentence. Nearly 30 years later, new medications are helping people with HIV or AIDS in this country live comparatively longer.
“The HIV infection has become more of a chronic illness,” explained Dr. Lisa Chirch, the attending physician at the David E. Rogers Center for HIV/AIDS Care at Southampton Hospital.
After speaking at a World AIDS day event at the hospital on Tuesday, December 1, Dr. Chirch added that health care providers now use many tools in addition to drugs to help combat the illness. To improve the well being of her patients, Dr. Chirch hopes to form an alliance with the newly created Wellness Institute at Southampton Hospital. The partnership between the two centers was the theme of the day on Tuesday.
Attendees were treated to sessions of chair yoga, Tai Chi and guided meditation. All of these classes are currently offered at the Institute. In addition, participants were given a primer in the programs at the Institute and were introduced to the benefits of acupuncture by the hospital’s acupuncturist Ginnette Diaz.
“I see my patients living longer. There is an aging population living with HIV. We want to include a holistic approach to managing their illness,” noted Dr. Chirch. “People like me who are trained in the traditional medical practice are sometimes trained to overlook some of these strategies for caring for the patient as a whole. It is important for us as health care providers to learn more.”
Dr. Chirch reasons these nontraditional approaches will help the lives of the increasing number of Suffolk County residents infected with HIV or who have the AIDS virus. She says patients from across the county visit the David E. Rogers Center, which has medical and mental professionals to guide patients from the time of diagnosis to mapping out treatment plans.
As the mortality rates of HIV/AIDS patients decrease due to new and refined medications, coupled with reports of new infections, Dr. Chirch explains more people are living with HIV or AIDS. According to charts provided by the New York State Department of Health, when the David E. Rogers Center first opened in 1993 there were roughly just over 1,000 cases of HIV or AIDS in Nassau and Suffolk County. By 2007, there were 2,372 cases in Nassau and 2,809 cases in Suffolk of people living with HIV or AIDS, both figures include patients in prisons. There was a near seven percent increase in the number of new cases from 2006 to 2007 when combining the statistics in both counties. Almost 105 people were newly diagnosed with HIV or AIDS in Suffolk County in 2007.
Compared to all of the other counties in New York State, excluding the New York City metropolitan area, the rates of HIV/AIDS in Suffolk County are extremely high and rivaled only by the figures from Westchester County. Of the 27,260 cases of people living with HIV/AIDS in New York State, around 5,500 were on Long Island.
A recent report published by the Center of Disease Control in August 2009, titled “HIV Prevention in United States at a Critical Crossroads,” estimates that 56,000 Americans are infected with HIV annually, translating to one person every nine-and-a-half minutes. The report went on to say that over one million people in the United States are currently infected with HIV. Research shows that Americans are becoming increasingly complacent when it comes to preventing the spread of the virus.
“A recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found the percentage of Americans who rank HIV as a major health problem has declined precipitously over the past decade. Even more troubling are studies showing that some of the populations with the highest rates of infection (including men who have sex with men and African Americans) either do not recognize their risk or believe HIV is no longer a serious health threat,” said the report.
“We continue to see new diagnoses,” noted Dr. Chirch, who added that there is still a great need for the services provided at the David E. Rogers Center.
The World Aids Day events at the hospital ended with a lunch for patients and healthcare providers. As the small and amiable group joked around with one other, it appeared Dr. Chirch’s belief was true. Today, there is life after a diagnosis.
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