Description
Book SynopsisA moving collection of firsthand accounts of the HIV epidemic. Tremendous strides have been made in the prevention and treatment of HIV since the disease first appeared in the 1980s. But because many of the people who studied and battled the virus in those early days are now gone, firsthand accounts are at risk of being lost. In HIV Pioneers, Wendee M. Wechsberg collects 29 first stories from the outset of the AIDS epidemic. These moving personal narratives and critical historical essays not only shed light on the experiences of global health pioneers, prominent scientists, and HIV survivors, but also preserve valuable lessons for managing the risk and impact of future epidemics. With unprecedented access to many key actors in the fight against AIDS and HIV, Wechsberg brings to life the harrowing reality of those early days of the epidemic. The book captures the experiences of those still working diligently and innovatively in the field, elevating the voices of doctors, scientists,
Trade ReviewAnyone interested in science, social history, communicable diseases or epidemiology would benefit from reading this topical, fascinating and inspirational book.
—Fay Hartley,
British Society for the History of MedicineI would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in HIV epidemiology, especially if they are keen to contribute to the broad-based scientific progress and the well-being of the population they are attempting to benefit.
—David Solomon, Anglia Ruskin University,
Nursing TimesTable of ContentsForeword, by James W. Curran
Introduction
Patients, Physicians, and Hospitals
The Healer, Dr. Beny Primm: Uncommon Man for Uncommon Times
"That AZT Kills Patients": Learning from Lamar—A 25-Year-Long Patient-Doctor Relationship
Unmoored
Yet Another Stigma: HIV Strikes People with Severe Mental Illness
AIDS Case Management: A Community Response
Women and Pioneering Women
Cherchez la Femme: Yes, the French Woman Did It. She Discovered the AIDS Virus.
The Needlestick Accident That Launched Healthcare Worker Safety: A Nurse's HIV Journey
HIV Takes Center Stage
"Don't Die of Ignorance": A Scramble for Knowledge
Methadone Treatment, Jessie Helms, and Reaching Women Who Use Drugs
South Africa's Response to AIDS and Preventing HIV in Young Women
Survivors
Finding the Black Church in the Fight to End AIDS: My Story
Finding My Calling in Hell: My Journey Through the Early Years of AIDS
What Did You Learn, Dorothy?
Once a Garden, Now a Wildflower
Personal Turning Points
Baltimore's HERO
But You're Not Part of Our Community
The Accidental Ethnographer
People Who Use Drugs
GRID: Gay-Related Immune Deficiency
Stories and Lessons Learned Surrounding People Who Inject Drugs: The Early Days of the HIV/AIDS Epidemic
Encounter With the Dark Side
Junkiebonden and Users' Groups: Learning About the Collective Organization of People Who Use Drugs
Social and Behavioral Science
We're From the Government and We're Here to Help You
First AIDS Grant, First Interviews with AIDS Patients, First Syringe Exchange Politics, First Syringe Research
The Development, Testing, and Implementation of an Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills Model for the Prediction and Promotion of HIV/AIDS Preventive Behavior
Out of Suffering: New Directions in AIDS Behavioral Prevention Research From a Personal Perspective
From the Many One: A Collaborative Approach
Historical Perspectives
The Beginning of Science in the HIV Epidemic: Eureka Moments
"Slim Disease": A New Health Scare in Uganda
Afterword
Contributors
Index
Index
