AIDS ADVOCACY: Group Pushes For Access to Specialists
The American Academy of HIV Medicine, an organization dedicated to bringing HIV/AIDS specialists together "to speak with a single voice on issues impacting the lives of HIV/AIDS patients," announced yesterday that more than 500 physicians serving nearly 100,000 HIV/AIDS patients across the country have joined the academy since it was launched in January. AAHIVM, based in Los Angeles, was founded with the goal of representing "at least half of the physicians who provide medical care for the more than 400,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States who are currently accessing care." Dr. R. Scott Hitt, a co-founder of the academy and former chair of the first Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, said that patients receive better care from specialists, noting, "Studies confirm that there is a steep learning curve among doctors who first begin treating HIV/AIDS individuals." Hitt added, "Studies argue for a national standard of care to be used in treating HIV/AIDS patients, by accredited, medical specialist[s]. If these protocols are adopted by health care organizations better patient outcomes and lower costs can be expected" (AAHIVM release, 10/24).
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