This couple came to our facility today and told the medical director they want to run just HIV test. The director asked them if they have ran it somewhere before they came here for confirmation the wife answered NO. The wife was the one that insisted they should both do HIV test first before she could allow the man to have sex with her. She denials the husband from having sex with her for two days because the husband travelled and refused to come home for 2 years. I over heard them talking loudly in the medical director office about their arguments and fight they had since the husband got back from his long godforsaken journey of complete 2 years while I was sitting with other staffs in the OPD because there is not work for me to do in the Lab. After few minutes they came to the laboratory with their separate laboratory request forms requesting for HIV test from the physician.
What I did first was to do pre counseling. Pre counseling is a method of counseling the patients about what's all about HIV, ways of contacting HIV which could be having unprotected sex with an infected person, using of infected contaminated sharps objects , via would opening and possibly through kissing with a deep wound or swallowing of infected saliva . And how to prevent contacting HIV through a method called "ABC. "A" means Abstinence from having sex. "B" means be faithful to your partner and "C"means uses of condoms. And most important thing is telling them the possibly outcome of the results which could be positive or negative. And HIV isn't a deadly disease as of olden days because of the availability of the drugs if one is tested HIV positive and agreed to be enrolled into taking medication and adherence to it. Even though the couple aren't paying attention to me because I know they have known all the things I was telling them. They just want to do the test and know the results. I could see it through their eyes and how they were responding to me while educating about HIV. After am done with the pre counseling I collected their blood samples and asked them to wait outside for about 15 minutes. I ran the test and the man, who is the husband turns out to be HIV positive and the woman is HIV negative. This kind of results is called "discondant results".
When one of the partner is HIV positive and the other is HIV negative.
This is one of the most difficult situation as a health worker to explain such different results to couples, you needs to be careful and been professional about it without judging. This kind of situation is one of the toughest situation that needs to be handle with care and well professional education if not that will be the end of those couple marriage especially if the HIV negative partner loses interest due to the fear of being transmitting the HIV virus during sexual intercourse without the use of condoms with the infected person.
I called the couple in and proceeded second method called post counseling.
Post counseling is way to explaining the outcome of the results and explaining more about the HIV isn't a deadly disease as of olden days because of the availability of the drugs if one is tested HIV positive and agreed to be enrolled into taking medication and adherence to it accurately. I told them the results and explained to them. Then send them to the medical director with the results forms for further explanation. They left the laboratory unit and went to the office of he director of the facility. The medical director interpreted the laboratory results to them and counselled them more about it and the drugs enrollment. Though in our facility we don't enroll HIV positive clients but we do referred them to the General Hospital for confirmation and enrollment.
They left the medical director office and headed straight to the General Hospital for confirmation and later called my facility medical director that the results came out true and the same thing. The man accepted to get enrolled and start the treatment immediately and the woman understood they can still have children without none of the children contacting the HIV virus.
When my facility medical director told me that the information I was happy and excited knowing the marriage is safe and sound. Indeed love conquers everything, all wrong doings and mistakes in life. Love doesn't see reasons for perfect in imperfections.
Being a health worker has taught me how to handled difficult situations, to be confidential and reasonable in responding to challenges and providing a tangible and precise solution to people.
Working in the hospital has make me to be so emotional and sympathy towards people because of their health conditions. Want to see that people got cured from the sickness they've been battling with and hoping they recovered from their illness.
I love working in the hospital, health is wealth and seeing people being healthy is my concern.
I'm excited you read my experience and have learned lessons. Thank you everyone!!