Document 2155
 DOCN  M94A2155
 TI    Educating a national medical workforce in HIV/AIDS.
 DT    9412
 AU    Stewart GJ; Dept of Clinical Immunology, Westmead Hospital, Sydney,;
       Australia.
 SO    Int Conf AIDS. 1994 Aug 7-12;10(1):369 (abstract no. PD0083). Unique
       Identifier : AIDSLINE ICA10/94370420
 AB    Under the auspicies of the Australasian Society for HIV Medicine (ASHM)
       and funded by the Australian Government, an ambitious mass education
       programme for all Australian doctors was commenced in 1992. The first
       goal was to reduce the rate of missed diagnoses of HIV infection
       following clinical presentation. Twenty six articles and an editorial
       were published in the Medical Journal of Australia from January to March
       1993 and the contents bound into a full colour monograph entitled, Could
       it be HIV?: The Clinical Recognition of HIV infection. This monograph
       was distributed to all 43,000 practicing doctors in Australia and the
       4,500 medical students in their clinical years. The monograph contains a
       conceptual framework for understanding the spectrum and chronology of
       HIV associated disease in addition to concise descriptions of each of
       the organ based clinical features and practical advice on history
       taking, decision making and pre and post test counselling. An article on
       the legal liability of failure to diagnose created a great deal of
       attention in the media. The contents are to be reinforced through a
       nation-wide series of workshops supported by a slide kit covering the
       major clinical photographs, figures, tables and the 36 case histories
       that illustrate failure to diagnose. Diagnosis was targeted first since
       all doctors have a responsibility to diagnose infection even though all
       may not wish to provide care for HIV infected patients. This appeal to
       professional responsibility avoids confrontation with prejudice. A
       second phase is now in progress aimed at improving the national
       workforces' skills in management of HIV associated disease and using the
       same approach of publication in the national refereed journal followed
       by production of a monograph, wide spread distribution and reinforcement
       through workshops. Evaluation of this overall programme is in progress.
       Lessons learnt from this programme are useful for other countries
       concerned by the lack of knowledge within its medical workforce.
 DE    Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/DIAGNOSIS  Australia  *Education,
       Medical, Continuing  Human  HIV Infections/*DIAGNOSIS  MEETING ABSTRACT

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