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A new two-year study, funded by the
National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Nursing Research, will
examine what services are lacking for residents of the Appalachian regions of
Tennessee and Alabama who are dying from HIV/AIDS. According to Sadie Hutson,
the project’s principal investigator, “End-of-life planning and care are
especially critical in high-prevalence areas of the United States, such as
Southern Appalachia; yet very little is known about the needs or the
availability of end-of-life services for those in this region.”
The research team, which includes
professors from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and the University of
Alabama, Tuscaloosa, will conduct one-on-one interviews with patients to assess
conditions that affect end-of-life needs, such as lack of health services,
poverty, unemployment, geographic hardships, insurance issues, and insufficient
education. “This study is one of the first to investigate the contribution of
the unique Appalachian culture and beliefs about end-of-life care in an area
that has historically been underserved with regard to healthcare services,”
Hutson said.
The $420,000 study hopes to develop
a map that will pinpoint service locations and show disparities in the
quantity, quality, and access to those locations. Future health strategies then
could compare what services were needed—such as hospice care, specialized
healthcare, and psychological services, among others—with what already existed.
“This study will set the stage for developing and testing interventions aimed
at increasing accessibility, cultural appropriateness, and acceptability and
utilization of services, as well as increasing provider awareness of the
particular needs of the population and its subgroups,” said Hutson.
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus.
To learn more about The Friends of
AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
