Community Health Nursing and the AIDS Pandemic: Case Report of One Community's Response

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) currently projects that there may be a cumulative total of 30 million cases of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) worldwide by the year 2000 ('WHO Predicts,' 1991). Community health nurses (CHNs), particularly those employed by local and state health departments, have a major role to play in the worldwide public health effort being mounted in response to the AIDS pandemic. CHN roles may include: direct caregiver, advocate, case manager, health educator, program planner, program coordinator, and policy advocate. How CHNs contribute to the effort against AIDS in various CHN roles is illustrated through a case report of a Midwestern U.S. suburban community's response to AIDS. The community's response was fostered and an AIDS program developed and implemented by CHNs employed by the community's health department. In addition to enabling this community to respond to AIDS in a humane and caring manner, the CHN initiatives have resulted in positive community feelings about the health department, and enhanced the image of CHNs as innovators and facilitators of change.