You are a physician who just completed medical school. The United States of America is undergoing a lot of restructuring of the medical field so you are trying to educate yourself on political candidates to make sure you agree with their policies that will affect your job directly. There is a presidential primary approaching and the two candidates from your political party have come to a local hospital to debate their health care policy plans.
The debate quickly turns to HIV/AIDS as a lot of money is dedicated to a disease that affects an estimated 0.4% of the US population1. It is predicted that the federal government will allocate
25.3 billion USD on HIV research, prevention, testing, and treatment in 2016.2
Candidate 1, Thrif T. Fellows, thinks this level of spending is excessive and recommends reducing HIV funding and allocating those monies into other health-related programs. The candidate cites that despite the large amounts of money directed to HIV prevention and treatment there are more people living with HIV/AIDS than ever before. Therefore, the resources committed to HIV prevention and treatment have not made a difference. Additionally, he states that the majority of people who are HIV positive are aware of their status already so there is no need to continue pouring resources into testing.
Candidate 2, Biggs Pender, argues that the HIV/AIDS funding has actually decreased the number of new infections. This has been achieved by increased screening, drug development, and supplementing the medical care of HIV positive individuals who cannot afford their medication without assistance. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is closely associated with poverty. Therefore, cutting funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment will put impoverished populations at even greater risk.
Using the provided documents, decide which candidate has a better grasp of the HIV epidemic in the US. Should the funds dedicated to HIV prevention and treatment should be allocated to other public health issues? Compose a letter to the editor of the local paper to share your analysis.
Instructions:
This is an exercise in using data to solve problems. You are provided with a scenario, prompt, and a series of documents. You must use the documents provided to formulate a decision. You need to clearly state which candidate Mr. Fellows or Mr. Pender has the better HIV funding policy and refer to the data from the documents to justify your choice.
You will be judged on the accuracy and thoroughness of your justification, your clarity in stating your point, and the organization of your arguments. Write in proper English grammar using full sentences.
Attachments:
Document A: excerpt from âTodayâs HIV/AIDS Epidemicâ (CDC)
Document B: HIV or AIDS Diagnoses from 1982 â 2014 (CDC, Annual HIV Surveillance Reports)
Document C: excerpt from âTrends in US HIV Diagnoses 2005-2014â (CDC)
Document D: excerpt from âCommunities in Crisis: Is there a generalized HIV epidemic in impoverished urban areas in the United States?â (NHBS-HET-1)
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
www.aids.gov
Document B: Annual HIV or AIDS diagnoses in the United States of America from 1982 â
2014. Source: CDC Annual HIV Surveillance Reports
Document C: excerpt from âTrends in U.S. HIV Diagnoses, 2005-2014â published by The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, February 2016.
Document D: excerpt from âCommunities in Crisis: Is There a Generalized HIV
Epidemic in Impoverished Urban Areas of the United States?â by Paul Denning,
MD, MPH and Elizabeth DiNenno, PhD
Data from National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System for Heterosexuals âRound
1 (NHBS-HET-1)
You are a physician who just completed medical school. The United States of America is undergoing a lot of restructuring of the medical field so you are trying to educate yourself on political candidates to make sure you agree with their policies that will affect your job directly. There is a presidential primary approaching and the two candidates from your political party have come to a local hospital to debate their health care policy plans.
The debate quickly turns to HIV/AIDS as a lot of money is dedicated to a disease that affects an estimated 0.4% of the US population1. It is predicted that the federal government will allocate
25.3 billion USD on HIV research, prevention, testing, and treatment in 2016.2
Candidate 1, Thrif T. Fellows, thinks this level of spending is excessive and recommends reducing HIV funding and allocating those monies into other health-related programs. The candidate cites that despite the large amounts of money directed to HIV prevention and treatment there are more people living with HIV/AIDS than ever before. Therefore, the resources committed to HIV prevention and treatment have not made a difference. Additionally, he states that the majority of people who are HIV positive are aware of their status already so there is no need to continue pouring resources into testing.
Candidate 2, Biggs Pender, argues that the HIV/AIDS funding has actually decreased the number of new infections. This has been achieved by increased screening, drug development, and supplementing the medical care of HIV positive individuals who cannot afford their medication without assistance. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is closely associated with poverty. Therefore, cutting funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment will put impoverished populations at even greater risk.
Using the provided documents, decide which candidate has a better grasp of the HIV epidemic in the US. Should the funds dedicated to HIV prevention and treatment should be allocated to other public health issues? Compose a letter to the editor of the local paper to share your analysis.
Instructions:
This is an exercise in using data to solve problems. You are provided with a scenario, prompt, and a series of documents. You must use the documents provided to formulate a decision. You need to clearly state which candidate Mr. Fellows or Mr. Pender has the better HIV funding policy and refer to the data from the documents to justify your choice.
You will be judged on the accuracy and thoroughness of your justification, your clarity in stating your point, and the organization of your arguments. Write in proper English grammar using full sentences.
Attachments:
Document A: excerpt from âTodayâs HIV/AIDS Epidemicâ (CDC)
Document B: HIV or AIDS Diagnoses from 1982 â 2014 (CDC, Annual HIV Surveillance Reports)
Document C: excerpt from âTrends in US HIV Diagnoses 2005-2014â (CDC)
Document D: excerpt from âCommunities in Crisis: Is there a generalized HIV epidemic in impoverished urban areas in the United States?â (NHBS-HET-1)
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
www.aids.gov
Document B: Annual HIV or AIDS diagnoses in the United States of America from 1982 â
2014. Source: CDC Annual HIV Surveillance Reports
Document C: excerpt from âTrends in U.S. HIV Diagnoses, 2005-2014â published by The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, February 2016.
Document D: excerpt from âCommunities in Crisis: Is There a Generalized HIV
Epidemic in Impoverished Urban Areas of the United States?â by Paul Denning,
MD, MPH and Elizabeth DiNenno, PhD
Data from National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System for Heterosexuals âRound
1 (NHBS-HET-1)
