For Doctors, Years of Grief and Daring

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1997. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

For Doctors, Years of Grief and Daring

New York Times (12/23/97) P. C4

Abstract: In a book set to be published next year by Oxford University Press, Drs. Ronald Bayer and Gerald Oppenheimer have compiled the recollections of nearly 80 doctors who were among the first to mobilize against the then-mysterious and unknown AIDS epidemic. One such doctor, Gerald Friedland of Yale-New Haven Hospital, remembers the fear and uncertainty of the new disease, but also the excitement of discovering something new. He recalls: "There was a puzzle to be worked out; that was thrilling because how often do you come across something new. ... At the same time, it was quite frightening because none of us really knew how it was and wasn't transmitted." This uncertainty over transmission, notes Dr. Constance Wofsy of San Francisco General Hospital, severely hampered efforts to forge a safety policy: "Our original infection control measures were written as 'you do not need to wear gloves to examine the patient except for ' ... but one day, .... the decision was reached to reverse the wording ... [to] 'you must wear gloves when in contact with bodily secretions' and then 'there is no need to wear gloves when simply touching the skin.'" Despite the realization of how the disease was transmitted, fears remained, even among doctors. In addition to learning about AIDS, doctors during the early onset of the epidemic were faced with another unknown factor: homosexuality. To that end, Dr. Oppenheimer says that many homosexual doctors were drawn to the disease, as they saw what so many people in their community were experiencing. Meanwhile, Dr. Wofsy points out that one of the most important differences most doctors see between now and 10 years ago is the public's perception of infected people.

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