HIV/AIDS TRAINING ONLINE COURSE FOR
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS


 

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that impairs the normal functioning of the human body's immune system (Sharp & Hahn, 2011). If not treated, HIV leads to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a chronic, life-threatening illness that causes patients to experience unexplained weight loss, fever, diarrhea, body pain, sore throat, headache, rashes, night sweats, and coughing. This disease first emerged in the Democratic 
Republic of Congo in 1959, although there is no clear data on whether this was the first virus case(Berg et al., 2021).

It took about two decades for the virus to reach the United States. Sharp and Hahn (2011) explain that the U.S. government recognized AIDS as a new disease in 1981 after many gay men succumbed to rare malignancies and opportunistic infections. The U.S. has made significant strides in treatment and public awareness four decades after this first case. In retrospect, challenges remain even among healthcare workers (HCWs).

According to Boakye and Mavhandu-Mudzusi (2019), although nurses and other HCWs are aware of HIV/AIDS, they hold opposing beliefs and attitudes about it, which inhibit the quality of care patients with this disease receive. The purpose of this manual is to present an overview of an online course designed to educate healthcare professionals about different aspects of HIV/AIDS in the United States, including epidemiology, transmission, testing approaches, related protocols, prevention, risk reduction, clinical management, and primary drugs. This way, the course will positively impact the knowledge and attitudes of HCWs toward HIV/AIDS and contribute to its effective mitigation.