Things You'll Need:
- Completed durable medical power of attorney
- Latex or latex-free gloves
- Completed living will
- Signed release of information form
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Step 1
Learn about HIV disease. One great way to do this is to subscribe to "POZ Magazine," which discusses health maintenance, describes current treatment regimens for HIV, profiles famous people with HIV and describes trends in HIV infection. See the Resources section below for a link.
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Step 2
Communicate with your loved one to find out what kind of help he or she wants and needs. Since most people with HIV currently enjoy good health for many years, your loved one may not need much in the way of care-giving.
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Step 3
Offer to attend to practical matters like walking the dog, balancing the checkbook or taking your loved one's children to and from school and activities. Fatigue is a common symptom among HIV patients.
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Step 4
Observe your loved one closely for any physical symptoms such as a rash, coughing, fever, headaches or increased confusion.
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Step 5
Wear latex or latex-free gloves if you are providing physical care for your loved one that will bring you into contact with bodily fluids--for instance, if you are cleaning a wound or changing an adult brief.
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Step 6
Encourage your loved one to see a doctor for regular care. Excellent and consistent medical care can sometimes make the difference between whether HIV is a chronic condition or a terminal one.
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Step 7
Accompany your loved one to doctor's appointments so that you can write down what the doctor says and ask questions your loved one may not remember to ask. Some patients become so stressed by a visit to the doctor that they may not even remember much of what was said during the appointment.
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Step 8
Ask your loved one to sign a release of information, available from the doctor's office, allowing the doctor to share information with you about your loved one's medical condition. Without this signed release of information, the doctor will not even be able to confirm that he is treating your loved one, much less offer you any useful facts about your loved one's health status.
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Step 9
Ask your loved one to complete a living will specifying what kind of care he or she would or would not want at the end of life. Since these forms can use vague and technical language, it's a good idea to sit down with a doctor and discuss which treatment options are worth pursuing and which are not. These forms can be obtained from your local hospital or from the Internet Legal Research Group. See the Resources section below for a link.
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Step 10
Have your loved one make you his or her durable power of attorney for health care decisions. This means you can make medical decisions on the patient's behalf if he or she can no longer communicate health care wishes. Your can obtain these forms from your local hospital or from the Internet Legal Research Group.
Comments
THAPATSO said
on 11/10/2008 AN HIV POSITIVE PERSON SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE POSITIVE THOUGHTS,LOVE HER/HIMSELF KNOWING THAT HIV IS JUST LIKE ANY CHRONIC CONDITION THAT CAN BE MANAGED WITH DRUGS SAME WAY AS HYPERTENSION.CONDITIONS LIKE CANCER ARE EVEN MORE DEADLY THAN HIV.