Chapter 4 Of The Nagami Book Dealt With Aids And How It...

Chapter 4 of the Nagami book dealt with AIDS and how it became a common infection in the population. In the book Dr. Nagami explained how mysterious the origin of the disease was in the beginning of the outbreak. There were various explanation for the origins. It was believed that amyl nitrate â€Å"poppers† could be a cause for the disease since homosexual men were known to use them before sex. It appeared predominately in the gay population at the time. Eventually it appeared in the intravenous drug using population, Haitians, people who underwent transfusions and eventually the heterosexual population. This unknown source of the disease was what caused fear in the early stages of the disease. Dr. Nagami explained how this caused fear even in the medical profession as some doctors moved away from treating HIV patients. Dr. Nagami herself changed her behavior being reluctant to shake hands with AIDS patients. Dr. Nagami also knew the fear of HIV from two personal experiences. She was conducting an exam of an HIV patient with a sharpened stick when the patient didn’t respond she poked her finger and drew blood. This exposed her to an HIV infection. She immediately washed her hands rinsed the wound with alcohol and began a regimen of AZT drug treatment. She immediately became fearful of contracting the disease and realized if she did have the disease she would only live to see her children reach their teenage years. This preoccupied her thoughts for a period of a weeks. She then