I'm sure the title of the blog got your attention. I hope it did. In order to live, study, & work in India one must have an HIV test. I was appalled when my doctor would not give me the test. Then I went on a quest to find the nearest clinic. As I searched the web and started calling places I was astonished at the cost of the test. I thought we had come a long way in the fight against AIDS and HIV prevention. I was wrong.
The closest and cheapest ($76) clinic was Planned Parenthood. Growing up I viewed PP as the poor man's gyno. It offers invaluable and necessary services to those who can't afford to get it anywhere else. It wasn't until I was in high school and college that I realized there was a stigma that went with this place and the ethical dilemma of their abortion practices. I felt that yesterday as I sat in the waiting room. Everyone was desperate not to make eye contact. I noticed two things happen inside of me. One I'm proud of; the other I'm ashamed of. My first reaction was to reach out and talk to people. There's no shame in being there. I wondered what their stories were. Then my second reaction came from the darkest part of my heart. Questions that were not of love or compassion but of judgement. The saddest part was I knew where I had learned it. During my 2 hour wait I ended up talking to a mother and daughter sitting next to me and the woman who shared my last name (we both kept answering when they called our name to come to the counter).
I was finally called back. It took just a few minutes for them to prick my finger and put my blood on what looked like a pregnancy test. Then I was back in the waiting room for the longest 15 minutes of my life. As far as I know there hasn't been any way I've been exposed to HIV. I was confident that I would be negative. For some reason I found myself nervous and concerned. I started thinking about all the people I know who are HIV positive and all the people I know that have lost loved ones to the horrid disease. My heart broke for them. When they called me back to give me the results I truly was able to give thanks that I was HIV negative. It's something that we shouldn't take for granted.
Below is a link to an article I found on BBC. I thought it was pretty interesting so I wanted to pass it along.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7754007.stm
It doesn't matter how people contract HIV, it's our privilege to show love and compassion to those who suffer. We should consider it an honor if we are given the chance to walk with those who are HIV positive. We have an obligation to fight for their right and access to affordable health care. Judgement should never be an option.
